Nisa Investment Advisors LLC Invests $4.94 Million in AngloGold Ashanti PLC $AU

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 70,201 shares of the mining company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,937,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AU. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Optimum Investment Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 30.3% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,023 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in AngloGold Ashanti in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $69,000. Finally, CoreCap Advisors LLC raised its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 27.3% during the third quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,006 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 36.09% of the company’s stock.

AngloGold Ashanti Trading Up 1.3%

Shares of AU stock opened at $92.27 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $38.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.32 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a current ratio of 2.58, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $83.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $67.73. AngloGold Ashanti PLC has a twelve month low of $25.26 and a twelve month high of $93.85.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 12th. The mining company reported $1.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.34 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $2.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.53 billion. AngloGold Ashanti had a return on equity of 24.01% and a net margin of 26.25%. Research analysts forecast that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 28th were paid a $0.91 dividend. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 28th. AngloGold Ashanti’s payout ratio is presently 80.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Zacks Research lowered AngloGold Ashanti from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Roth Capital increased their price objective on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. HSBC restated a “reduce” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.00.

About AngloGold Ashanti

AngloGold Ashanti is a global gold mining company engaged in the exploration, development, production, processing and sale of gold. Headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, the company’s core activities span the full mining value chain from greenfield exploration and mine development through to ore processing and rehabilitation. Gold is the primary commodity produced, with individual operations sometimes yielding other by‑products depending on local geology and processing methods.

The company was formed in 2004 through the merger of AngloGold and Ashanti Goldfields, creating a diversified international gold producer.