AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $95.00.

Several research analysts have recently commented on AU shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Scotiabank raised their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $92.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Roth Mkm upped their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $84.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on AngloGold Ashanti from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AU opened at $112.22 on Thursday. AngloGold Ashanti has a one year low of $28.44 and a one year high of $115.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.58 and a quick ratio of 1.98. The firm has a market cap of $47.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.72 and a beta of 0.59. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $94.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $76.49.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $2.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.53 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that AngloGold Ashanti will post 3.83 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of AngloGold Ashanti

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT acquired a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its stake in AngloGold Ashanti by 454.1% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 471 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 386 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position 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 acquiring an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optimum Investment Advisors acquired a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 36.09% of the company’s stock.

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.