Barclays PLC Has $215.73 Million Stock Position in AngloGold Ashanti PLC $AU

Barclays PLC increased its stake in AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) by 33.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,067,339 shares of the mining company’s stock after purchasing an additional 766,310 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned approximately 0.73% of AngloGold Ashanti worth $215,726,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Pitcairn Co. increased its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 71.6% in the 3rd quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 12,966 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $912,000 after buying an additional 5,409 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $344,000. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC increased its stake in AngloGold Ashanti by 6.2% in the third quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 16,622 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $1,169,000 after acquiring an additional 971 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Quantitative Investments LLC acquired a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the third quarter valued at approximately $306,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 7.8% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 31,439 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $2,211,000 after purchasing an additional 2,286 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 36.09% of the company’s stock.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of AU opened at $106.58 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $104.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $83.59. AngloGold Ashanti PLC has a 12 month low of $30.19 and a 12 month high of $129.14. The company has a market capitalization of $53.81 billion, a PE ratio of 20.54 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a current ratio of 2.58, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 20th. The mining company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.90. The company had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. AngloGold Ashanti had a return on equity of 29.70% and a net margin of 26.65%. On average, analysts anticipate that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 3.83 EPS for the current year.

AngloGold Ashanti Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.173 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. AngloGold Ashanti’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.13%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AU shares. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $122.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Friday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on AngloGold Ashanti from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Citigroup upped their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Zacks Research lowered AngloGold Ashanti from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 13th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $100.50.

AngloGold Ashanti Company Profile

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.