AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU) Shares Sold by Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV

Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV cut its stake in AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU - Free Report) by 19.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 98,282 shares of the mining company's stock after selling 23,107 shares during the period. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV's holdings in AngloGold Ashanti were worth $3,648,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AU. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 11,353 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $424,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 5,799 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $134,000 after buying an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Sprott Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Sprott Inc. now owns 91,168 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $2,104,000 after purchasing an additional 662 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 210.6% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,174 shares of the mining company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 796 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 8,860 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $204,000 after purchasing an additional 844 shares during the last quarter. 36.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AngloGold Ashanti Trading Up 4.3%

AngloGold Ashanti stock traded up $2.08 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $50.90. 5,218,481 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,662,062. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $42.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $33.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market cap of $21.37 billion, a PE ratio of 16.74 and a beta of 0.49. AngloGold Ashanti plc has a 12-month low of $22.34 and a 12-month high of $51.11.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 9th. The mining company reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $1.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. Research analysts expect that AngloGold Ashanti plc will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 2nd were given a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This represents a dividend yield of 1.14%. AngloGold Ashanti's dividend payout ratio is currently 16.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on AU. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, June 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $33.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. HSBC reaffirmed a "reduce" rating and set a $35.00 price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Roth Capital assumed coverage on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research report on Thursday. They set a "buy" rating and a $52.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $43.08.

AngloGold Ashanti Company Profile

AngloGold Ashanti plc operates as a gold mining company in Africa, Australia, and the Americas. The company primarily explores for gold, as well as produces silver and sulphuric acid as by-products. Its flagship property is a 100% owned Geita mine located in the Lake Victoria goldfields of the Mwanza region in north-western Tanzania.