Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Has $5.16 Million Stock Holdings in Novagold Resources Inc. $NG

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Novagold Resources Inc. by 13.5%, owning approximately 1.77 million shares valued at over $5 million as of the end of the first quarter.
• Several other institutional investors have also boosted their positions in Novagold, with hedge funds now owning over 57.56% of the company's stock.
• Analyst ratings for Novagold Resources have improved, with Royal Bank of Canada upgrading the stock to "outperform" and raising the price target from $5.00 to $7.00.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Novagold Resources Inc. (NYSEAMERICAN:NG - Free Report) TSE: NG by 13.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,766,867 shares of the mining company's stock after acquiring an additional 210,631 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned approximately 0.43% of Novagold Resources worth $5,159,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in Novagold Resources by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,562,611 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $5,203,000 after purchasing an additional 101,860 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in shares of Novagold Resources by 18.6% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 247,190 shares of the mining company's stock worth $823,000 after buying an additional 38,739 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its position in Novagold Resources by 46.0% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 224,614 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $748,000 after purchasing an additional 70,780 shares in the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. bought a new position in shares of Novagold Resources during the fourth quarter valued at about $73,000. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Novagold Resources by 49.0% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 68,690 shares of the mining company's stock worth $229,000 after purchasing an additional 22,601 shares during the last quarter. 57.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on NG shares. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Novagold Resources in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. They set a "buy" rating and a $7.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada raised shares of Novagold Resources from a "sector perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $5.00 to $7.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Novagold Resources presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $7.00.

Novagold Resources Trading Up 3.9%

Shares of Novagold Resources stock traded up $0.28 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $7.53. 12,692,590 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,216,906. Novagold Resources Inc. has a twelve month low of $2.26 and a twelve month high of $7.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -31.37 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $6.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $4.50. The company has a current ratio of 76.72, a quick ratio of 76.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Hume D. Kyle purchased 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 30th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $4.10 per share, with a total value of $41,000.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 22,348 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $91,626.80. This trade represents a 80.98% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.88% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Novagold Resources Company Profile

NovaGold Resources Inc explores for and develops gold mineral properties in the United States. Its principal asset is the Donlin Gold project consisting of 493 mining claims covering an area of approximately 29,008 hectares located in the Kuskokwim region of southwestern Alaska. The company was formerly known as NovaCan Mining Resources (1985) Limited and changed its name to NovaGold Resources Inc in March 1987.