Harmony Gold Mining (NYSE:HMY) Shares Gap Up - Here's Why

Key Points

• Shares gapped up premarket from $13.86 to $14.94 and last traded around $14.66 on ~2.48M shares, but the stock remains below its 50‑day ($20.18) and 200‑day ($19.07) moving averages.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $16.00; the broker mix is 1 Strong Buy, 1 Buy and 3 Holds with several recent downgrades.
• Major institutional buying has occurred—AQR, FIL, Goldman, Invesco and Arrowstreet materially increased stakes—and institutions now own about 31.79% of the stock.

Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited (NYSE:HMY - Get Free Report)'s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $13.86, but opened at $14.94. Harmony Gold Mining shares last traded at $14.6630, with a volume of 2,482,748 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on HMY. Wall Street Zen cut Harmony Gold Mining from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Harmony Gold Mining in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Harmony Gold Mining from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $16.00.

Harmony Gold Mining Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average price of $20.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.07. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.03.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Harmony Gold Mining

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Harmony Gold Mining by 48.2% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,871,169 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $105,916,000 after purchasing an additional 1,910,028 shares in the last quarter. FIL Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Harmony Gold Mining in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $111,182,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in Harmony Gold Mining by 215.7% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 5,571,374 shares of the mining company's stock worth $82,289,000 after buying an additional 3,806,468 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Harmony Gold Mining by 12,337.7% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,795,844 shares of the mining company's stock worth $66,998,000 after buying an additional 4,757,285 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in Harmony Gold Mining by 31.9% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,042,664 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $60,549,000 after acquiring an additional 736,233 shares in the last quarter. 31.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Harmony Gold Mining

Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited is a South Africa–based precious metals producer primarily engaged in the exploration, mining and processing of gold. The company operates a portfolio of underground and surface mining operations, targeting both reef-hosted and alluvial deposits. In addition to gold, Harmony’s activities encompass the extraction of copper as a byproduct at its Papua New Guinea operations.

In South Africa, Harmony’s mining footprint includes deep-level underground operations in the Witwatersrand Basin, where it employs a combination of conventional and mechanized mining methods.

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