Prudential PLC Has $1.68 Million Holdings in AngloGold Ashanti PLC $AU

Key Points

• Prudential PLC has reduced its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 25%, owning 45,275 shares valued at approximately $1.68 million at the end of the first quarter.
• Several hedge funds, including Vanguard Group and Dimensional Fund Advisors, have increased their positions in AngloGold Ashanti, showing growing institutional interest in the company.
• AngloGold Ashanti recently announced a semi-annual dividend of $0.80 per share, which is an increase from the previous dividend of $0.69, reflecting positive financial performance.

Prudential PLC lessened its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU - Free Report) by 25.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 45,275 shares of the mining company's stock after selling 15,089 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC's holdings in AngloGold Ashanti were worth $1,681,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the fourth quarter valued at $392,000. Vanguard Capital Wealth Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the first quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Cerity Partners LLC purchased a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the 1st quarter worth approximately $312,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 59.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 520,772 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $12,019,000 after purchasing an additional 193,664 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management purchased a new position in AngloGold Ashanti in the first quarter valued at about $238,000. Institutional investors own 36.09% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on AU shares. Scotiabank reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Monday, August 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $58.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen cut AngloGold Ashanti from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Roth Capital restated a "buy" rating on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $49.60.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Down 2.3%

Shares of NYSE:AU traded down $1.2150 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $52.4850. 921,297 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,115,083. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $49.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $41.82. The company has a current ratio of 2.34, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. AngloGold Ashanti PLC has a 52 week low of $22.45 and a 52 week high of $59.19. The company has a market cap of $22.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.99 and a beta of 0.46.

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

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

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

AngloGold Ashanti 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.