Natixis Increases Stock Holdings in Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD)

Natixis raised its holdings in Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD - Free Report) TSE: ABX by 55.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 114,386 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock after purchasing an additional 40,719 shares during the period. Natixis' holdings in Barrick Gold were worth $1,773,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Bard Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of Barrick Gold by 3.5% in the third quarter. Bard Financial Services Inc. now owns 55,875 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $1,111,000 after acquiring an additional 1,875 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Barrick Gold during the third quarter valued at approximately $517,000. Synovus Financial Corp bought a new position in shares of Barrick Gold during the 3rd quarter valued at $210,000. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. grew its stake in shares of Barrick Gold by 25.2% during the third quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 49,700 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $989,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Barrick Gold by 19.9% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 483,613 shares of the gold and copper producer's stock valued at $9,630,000 after buying an additional 80,366 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.85% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on GOLD shares. StockNews.com raised Barrick Gold from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 5th. National Bankshares restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Barrick Gold in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Barrick Gold from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, April 14th. National Bank Financial upgraded shares of Barrick Gold to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Barrick Gold from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $24.05.

Barrick Gold Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GOLD traded down $0.36 during trading on Friday, hitting $19.05. The company had a trading volume of 17,025,297 shares, compared to its average volume of 21,617,696. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a current ratio of 2.89. Barrick Gold Corp has a 12 month low of $15.11 and a 12 month high of $21.35. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $18.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.55.

Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD - Get Free Report) TSE: ABX last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The gold and copper producer reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.46. Barrick Gold had a return on equity of 6.76% and a net margin of 16.59%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Barrick Gold Corp will post 1.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Barrick Gold Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Barrick Gold's dividend payout ratio is presently 32.52%.

Barrick Gold declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the gold and copper producer to buy up to 3.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Barrick Gold Company Profile

Barrick Gold Corporation is a sector-leading gold and copper producer.  Its shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol GOLD and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol ABX.   In January 2019 Barrick merged with Randgold Resources and in July that year it combined its gold mines in Nevada, USA, with those of Newmont Corporation in a joint venture, Nevada Gold Mines, which is majority-owned and operated by Barrick.