U S Global Investors Inc. Acquires 40,445 Shares of AngloGold Ashanti PLC $AU

U S Global Investors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) by 44.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 130,445 shares of the mining company’s stock after buying an additional 40,445 shares during the period. AngloGold Ashanti accounts for about 1.5% of U S Global Investors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. U S Global Investors Inc.’s holdings in AngloGold Ashanti were worth $12,700,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AU. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA purchased a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the fourth quarter valued at about $13,777,000. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,139,000. Beacon Harbor Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the 4th quarter worth approximately $6,523,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 606.8% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 13,054 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $918,000 after acquiring an additional 11,207 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Euro Pacific Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 13.6% during the 4th quarter. Euro Pacific Asset Management LLC now owns 122,885 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $10,556,000 after acquiring an additional 14,673 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 36.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AU has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Roth Capital reduced their price target on AngloGold Ashanti from $121.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on AngloGold Ashanti from $114.00 to $111.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen lowered AngloGold Ashanti from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 6th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AngloGold Ashanti presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $111.67.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of AU traded up $0.13 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $82.04. 2,180,030 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,693,510. AngloGold Ashanti PLC has a 1-year low of $45.36 and a 1-year high of $129.14. The company has a quick ratio of 2.11, a current ratio of 2.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The company has a market capitalization of $41.42 billion, a PE ratio of 12.03 and a beta of 0.65. The business has a 50 day moving average of $89.79 and a 200 day moving average of $97.22.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The mining company reported $2.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $3.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.26 billion. AngloGold Ashanti had a net margin of 31.11% and a return on equity of 36.41%. Equities research analysts anticipate that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 8.91 EPS for the current year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were issued a $1.16 dividend. This is an increase from AngloGold Ashanti’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. AngloGold Ashanti’s dividend payout ratio is 68.04%.

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.