AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms have also commented on AU. Weiss Ratings upgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $58.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen raised AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Scotiabank upgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $55.00 to $90.00 in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, HSBC restated a “reduce” rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Thursday, October 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.17.

AngloGold Ashanti Price Performance

Shares of AngloGold Ashanti stock opened at $68.96 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.99, a quick ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a market cap of $28.94 billion, a PE ratio of 18.34 and a beta of 0.53. AngloGold Ashanti has a 12 month low of $22.45 and a 12 month high of $79.94. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $66.62 and a 200 day moving average of $53.71.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The mining company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.31 by ($0.06). AngloGold Ashanti had a net margin of 23.60% and a return on equity of 22.54%. The business had revenue of $2.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.29 billion. On average, research analysts expect that AngloGold Ashanti will post 3.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the first quarter worth about $30,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. purchased a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the second quarter worth about $30,000. SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the first quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Optimum Investment Advisors purchased a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. 36.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.