Gold Fields Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:GFI)

Gold Fields Limited (NYSE:GFI - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Stock investors bought 4,751 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 61% compared to the average volume of 2,945 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GFI has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Gold Fields from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Monday. StockNews.com raised shares of Gold Fields from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Gold Fields from $17.10 to $18.80 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $17.95.

Institutional Trading of Gold Fields

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Amundi raised its position in Gold Fields by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 3,107,369 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,684,000 after buying an additional 211,333 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of Gold Fields by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,976,004 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,283,000 after purchasing an additional 178,973 shares in the last quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP boosted its holdings in Gold Fields by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP now owns 2,710,910 shares of the company's stock worth $35,784,000 after purchasing an additional 227,704 shares during the last quarter. DJE Kapital AG bought a new stake in Gold Fields in the 4th quarter worth about $33,486,000. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its position in shares of Gold Fields by 11.3% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,164,906 shares of the company's stock worth $28,490,000 after buying an additional 219,254 shares in the last quarter. 24.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gold Fields Stock Up 2.8 %

GFI stock traded up $0.68 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $24.55. 3,203,892 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,628,595. Gold Fields has a 52 week low of $12.98 and a 52 week high of $25.52. The company has a market cap of $21.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 0.92. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $20.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $17.11.

Gold Fields Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.3752 dividend. This is a boost from Gold Fields's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.17. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a yield of 1.6%. Gold Fields's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.96%.

Gold Fields Company Profile

Gold Fields Limited operates as a gold producer with reserves and resources in Chile, South Africa, Ghana, Canada, Australia, and Peru. It also explores for copper and silver deposits. The company was founded in 1887 and is based in Sandton, South Africa.