Van ECK Associates Corp Reduces Position in AngloGold Ashanti PLC $AU

Van ECK Associates Corp cut its position in AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 18,794,119 shares of the mining company’s stock after selling 1,053,813 shares during the quarter. AngloGold Ashanti accounts for 1.3% of Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in AngloGold Ashanti were worth $1,602,763,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AU. Ninety One SA Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,380,472,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the 4th quarter valued at $426,477,000. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 1,175.7% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,967,173 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $226,354,000 after buying an additional 4,577,807 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 64.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,186,463 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $357,022,000 after buying an additional 1,641,545 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the 3rd quarter valued at $87,236,000. 36.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on AU shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 6th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Scotiabank dropped their target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $134.00 to $133.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $121.00 price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $114.00.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Up 3.7%

Shares of NYSE:AU opened at $86.26 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $43.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.65 and a beta of 0.60. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $97.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $97.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 2.71 and a quick ratio of 2.11. AngloGold Ashanti PLC has a 1-year low of $43.44 and a 1-year high of $129.14.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The mining company reported $2.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.25. The firm 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 9.26 EPS for the current year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th were paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.4%. This is an increase from AngloGold Ashanti’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. AngloGold Ashanti’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.04%.

About AngloGold Ashanti

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.