RFG Advisory LLC Takes $1.79 Million Position in AngloGold Ashanti PLC $AU

RFG Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 25,486 shares of the mining company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,792,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in AngloGold Ashanti by 129.0% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 490 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors purchased a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti during the third quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 330.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 964 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 740 shares during the last quarter. 36.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AU has been the topic of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on AngloGold Ashanti from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Roth Mkm raised their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Zacks Research upgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Scotiabank increased their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $92.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, AngloGold Ashanti has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.00.

AngloGold Ashanti Price Performance

Shares of AU opened at $108.37 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $93.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $76.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.58. AngloGold Ashanti PLC has a one year low of $28.44 and a one year high of $115.81.

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

AngloGold Ashanti 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.