Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD) Stock Price Up 1.1% - Should You Buy?

Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD - Get Free Report) TSE: ABX shares rose 1.1% on Monday . The company traded as high as $18.88 and last traded at $18.61. Approximately 5,951,630 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 72% from the average daily volume of 21,416,145 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.41.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on GOLD. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Barrick Gold from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Barrick Gold from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 31st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Barrick Gold from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on Barrick Gold in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Finally, TD Securities cut their price objective on Barrick Gold from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Barrick Gold currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $24.05.

Barrick Gold Trading Down 2.3 %

The firm has a market cap of $32.58 billion, a PE ratio of 15.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a current ratio of 2.89, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $19.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.86.

Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD - Get Free Report) TSE: ABX last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The gold and copper producer reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.06. Barrick Gold had a net margin of 16.59% and a return on equity of 6.76%. The business had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.15 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.19 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Barrick Gold Corp will post 1.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Barrick Gold Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be issued a $0.10 dividend. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.11%. Barrick Gold's dividend payout ratio is presently 32.52%.

Barrick Gold announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the gold and copper producer to purchase up to 3.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Barrick Gold

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Barrick Gold by 15.6% in the first quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 35,282 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $686,000 after purchasing an additional 4,772 shares during the period. Monaco Asset Management SAM increased its stake in shares of Barrick Gold by 27.1% during the first quarter. Monaco Asset Management SAM now owns 1,435,976 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock worth $27,915,000 after buying an additional 305,976 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors raised its holdings in Barrick Gold by 21.2% in the first quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 17,594 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $342,000 after acquiring an additional 3,081 shares in the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in Barrick Gold during the 1st quarter worth approximately $58,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Barrick Gold by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 15,614,848 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $303,161,000 after purchasing an additional 296,472 shares during the last quarter. 62.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Barrick Gold Company Profile

Barrick Gold Corporation is a sector-leading gold and copper producer.  Its shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol GOLD and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol ABX.   In January 2019 Barrick merged with Randgold Resources and in July that year it combined its gold mines in Nevada, USA, with those of Newmont Corporation in a joint venture, Nevada Gold Mines, which is majority-owned and operated by Barrick.