Groupe la Francaise Increases Stock Holdings in B2Gold Corp. $BTG

Key Points

• Groupe la Francaise increased its stake in B2Gold Corp. by 17.1%, acquiring a total of 820,000 shares valued at approximately $2.59 million.
• Several other large investors have also made recent investments in B2Gold, contributing to institutional ownership of 61.40% of the company's stock.
• B2Gold recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.02 per share, with a dividend yield of 2.0% and a negative payout ratio of -22.86%.

Groupe la Francaise lifted its stake in B2Gold Corp. (NYSE:BTG - Free Report) by 17.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 820,000 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 120,000 shares during the quarter. Groupe la Francaise owned about 0.06% of B2Gold worth $2,587,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of BTG. Cantor Fitzgerald L. P. purchased a new position in B2Gold during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Independent Wealth Network Inc. purchased a new position in B2Gold during the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC purchased a new position in B2Gold during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Kercheville Advisors LLC purchased a new position in B2Gold during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Walker Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in B2Gold during the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on BTG. CIBC restated a "neutral" rating and set a $4.00 price objective (up previously from $3.60) on shares of B2Gold in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. National Bankshares restated an "outperform" rating on shares of B2Gold in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Raymond James Financial upgraded B2Gold to a "moderate buy" rating and set a $4.50 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, June 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded B2Gold from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered B2Gold from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $4.31.

B2Gold Trading Up 2.1%

Shares of NYSE BTG opened at $3.98 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $3.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3.24. The firm has a market cap of $5.27 billion, a PE ratio of -8.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 0.39. B2Gold Corp. has a twelve month low of $2.20 and a twelve month high of $4.01.

B2Gold (NYSE:BTG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.13 by ($0.01). B2Gold had a negative net margin of 33.12% and a positive return on equity of 5.65%. The company's revenue was up 40.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.06 EPS. Analysts expect that B2Gold Corp. will post 0.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

B2Gold Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 10th will be given a $0.02 dividend. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 10th. B2Gold's payout ratio is presently -22.86%.

B2Gold Profile

B2Gold Corp. operates as a gold producer company. It operates the Fekola Mine in Mali, the Masbate Mine in the Philippines, and the Otjikoto Mine in Namibia. The company also has an 100% interest in the Gramalote gold project in Colombia; 24% interest in the Calibre Mining Corp.; and approximately 19% interest in BeMetals Corp.

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