Brokerages Set Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD) Target Price at $24.05

Shares of Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD) (TSE:ABX) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $24.05.

Several analysts recently weighed in on GOLD shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on Barrick Gold from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Barrick Gold from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 31st. Scotiabank lifted their price target 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. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Barrick Gold from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Finally, TD Securities decreased their target price on shares of Barrick Gold from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Barrick Gold

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Barrick Gold by 21.8% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,146 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 563 shares during the period. Sapient Capital LLC increased its stake in Barrick Gold by 0.5% in the first quarter. Sapient Capital LLC now owns 114,572 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock valued at $2,227,000 after purchasing an additional 624 shares in the last quarter. Keystone Financial Group raised its holdings in shares of Barrick Gold by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Keystone Financial Group now owns 56,394 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock valued at $874,000 after purchasing an additional 753 shares during the period. Edge Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Barrick Gold by 6.1% during the 1st quarter. Edge Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,110 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock worth $255,000 after purchasing an additional 755 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its stake in shares of Barrick Gold by 55.8% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 2,193 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 785 shares during the period. 62.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Barrick Gold Trading Down 3.5 %

Shares of Barrick Gold stock opened at $18.37 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $18.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.90. The company has a market capitalization of $31.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.94, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 2.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. Barrick Gold has a 12-month low of $15.11 and a 12-month high of $21.35.

Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD) (TSE:ABX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The gold and copper producer reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46. Barrick Gold had a net margin of 16.59% and a return on equity of 6.76%. On average, analysts forecast that Barrick Gold will post 1.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Barrick Gold announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 12th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the gold and copper producer to repurchase up to 3.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Barrick Gold Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Barrick Gold’s payout ratio is 32.52%.

About Barrick Gold

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.