AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) Reaches New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $34.75 and last traded at $34.46, with a volume of 482149 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $32.99.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $37.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $36.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $34.00.

AngloGold Ashanti Price Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $30.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $27.81. 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 stock has a market cap of $14.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.11 and a beta of 0.92.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The mining company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.75 billion. Analysts forecast that AngloGold Ashanti plc will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.69 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 2.8%. This is an increase from AngloGold Ashanti’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. AngloGold Ashanti’s dividend payout ratio is 43.13%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AngloGold Ashanti

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AU. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 95.6% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 247,292 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $6,585,000 after acquiring an additional 120,844 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 297.9% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 259,120 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $6,900,000 after purchasing an additional 193,992 shares in the last quarter. Qsemble Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 3rd quarter valued at about $368,000. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 39.5% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 10,448,445 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $277,968,000 after purchasing an additional 2,957,304 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP boosted its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 80.2% during the 3rd quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 185,968 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $4,952,000 after purchasing an additional 82,788 shares in the last quarter. 36.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About AngloGold Ashanti

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.