AngloGold Ashanti’s (AU) “Reduce” Rating Reiterated at HSBC

HSBC restated their reduce rating on shares of AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. HSBC currently has a $35.00 price objective on the mining company’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $34.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AngloGold Ashanti presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $36.80.

AngloGold Ashanti Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AU opened at $43.19 on Thursday. AngloGold Ashanti has a twelve month low of $21.65 and a twelve month high of $46.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.50 and a beta of 0.81. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $34.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $29.42.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The mining company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.75 billion. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that AngloGold Ashanti will post 3.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.69 per share. This is an increase from AngloGold Ashanti’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This represents a yield of 2.8%. AngloGold Ashanti’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.13%.

Institutional Trading of AngloGold Ashanti

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AU. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 546.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 211,826 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $5,641,000 after purchasing an additional 179,045 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the third quarter worth approximately $1,606,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 327,108 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $8,711,000 after acquiring an additional 8,676 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in AngloGold Ashanti by 80.5% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 25,452 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $678,000 after purchasing an additional 11,352 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 378.2% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,782 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $127,000 after purchasing an additional 3,782 shares during the last quarter. 36.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AngloGold Ashanti Company 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.