Short Interest in Newmont Co. (NYSE:NEM) Expands By 31.3%

Newmont Co. (NYSE:NEM) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 21,640,000 shares, an increase of 31.3% from the January 31st total of 16,480,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 9,840,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.2 days. Approximately 1.9% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NEM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Newmont from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Newmont from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Raymond James cut their price target on shares of Newmont from $62.00 to $59.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Newmont in a report on Monday, January 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $47.20 price objective on the stock. Finally, Bernstein Bank upped their price target on shares of Newmont from $55.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Monday, November 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Newmont has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $53.16.

Newmont Trading Up 3.3 %

Shares of NEM opened at $43.89 on Thursday. Newmont has a 12-month low of $33.29 and a 12-month high of $58.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.98, a P/E/G ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 0.52. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $42.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Newmont (NYSE:NEM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The basic materials company reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $5.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.32 billion. Newmont had a net margin of 17.92% and a return on equity of 13.52%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Newmont will post 3.45 EPS for the current year.

Newmont Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be given a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.28%. Newmont’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.13%.

Insider Transactions at Newmont

In other news, COO Natascha Viljoen sold 9,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total value of $360,000.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 145,967 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,838,680. This represents a 5.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Bruce R. Brook sold 2,077 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.00, for a total transaction of $83,080.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 52,070 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,082,800. This represents a 3.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 33,231 shares of company stock worth $1,388,758 over the last three months. 0.06% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Newmont

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Newmont by 191.8% in the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 496 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 326 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Newmont in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Newmont by 66.0% during the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 880 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares in the last quarter. Redwood Park Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Newmont in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Promus Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Newmont in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. 68.85% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Newmont

Newmont Corporation engages in the production and exploration of gold. It also explores for copper, silver, zinc, and lead. The company has operations and/or assets in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Peru, Suriname, Argentina, Chile, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Ecuador, Fiji, and Ghana.