Barings LLC Has $27.19 Million Stock Position in AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU)

Key Points

• Barings LLC has reduced its stake in AngloGold Ashanti PLC by 15.5%, now holding 727,628 shares valued at approximately $27 million, which constitutes about 0.7% of its overall portfolio.
• The mining company reported earnings of $1.25 per share for the latest quarter, missing analysts' expectations, but exceeded revenue forecasts with $2.45 billion.
• AngloGold Ashanti's dividend yield is currently at 114.0%, with a payout ratio of 16.45%, following a recent payment of $0.125 per share to investors.

Barings LLC trimmed its stake in AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU - Free Report) by 15.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 727,628 shares of the mining company's stock after selling 133,836 shares during the quarter. AngloGold Ashanti accounts for 0.7% of Barings LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Barings LLC owned about 0.17% of AngloGold Ashanti worth $27,188,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $406,000. Sei Investments Co. acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the fourth quarter worth $1,750,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti during the fourth quarter worth $2,332,000. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti during the fourth quarter worth $112,000. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. 36.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on AU shares. HSBC restated a "reduce" rating and issued a $35.00 price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $42.00 to $43.50 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen downgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, June 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $58.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Roth Capital reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $45.08.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Up 6.5%

Shares of AU traded up $3.48 on Tuesday, hitting $56.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,083,202 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,160,372. AngloGold Ashanti PLC has a fifty-two week low of $22.45 and a fifty-two week high of $56.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 2.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $47.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $39.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.04 and a beta of 0.46.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The mining company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.31 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $2.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. AngloGold Ashanti had a return on equity of 24.25% and a net margin of 23.60%. On average, equities research analysts expect that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 3.83 EPS for the current year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be issued a $0.80 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 610.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 22nd. This is a boost from AngloGold Ashanti's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.69. AngloGold Ashanti's payout ratio is currently 13.30%.

About AngloGold Ashanti

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.