Voya Investment Management LLC Sells 34,278 Shares of AngloGold Ashanti PLC $AU

Voya Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) by 29.7% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 81,076 shares of the mining company’s stock after selling 34,278 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC’s holdings in AngloGold Ashanti were worth $5,702,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted 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 valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the second quarter valued at $69,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 579.2% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,664 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 1,419 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 36.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AU. Zacks Research downgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. HSBC reiterated a “reduce” rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $90.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Roth Capital lifted their target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, December 13th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $86.00.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of AU opened at $89.55 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.58 and a quick ratio of 1.98. AngloGold Ashanti PLC has a one year low of $22.45 and a one year high of $91.00. The company has a market cap of $37.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.73 and a beta of 0.58. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $78.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.13.

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

AngloGold Ashanti Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 28th were paid a $0.91 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 28th. This represents a $3.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. AngloGold Ashanti’s payout ratio is currently 80.18%.

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.