Chesapeake Capital Corp IL Invests $1.02 Million in AngloGold Ashanti PLC $AU

Chesapeake Capital Corp IL purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 14,472 shares of the mining company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,018,000. AngloGold Ashanti comprises about 0.9% of Chesapeake Capital Corp IL’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest holding.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AngloGold Ashanti in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 129.0% during the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 490 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the third quarter worth $35,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 30.3% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,023 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti in the third quarter valued at about $53,000. 36.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Performance

AU opened at $94.73 on Friday. 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 52-week low of $31.91 and a 52-week high of $129.14. The firm has a market cap of $47.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.25 and a beta of 0.55. The business’s fifty day moving average is $106.09 and its 200-day moving average is $85.34.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 20th. The mining company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90. AngloGold Ashanti had a return on equity of 29.70% and a net margin of 26.65%.The business had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.99 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 3.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.173 per share. This represents a $0.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. AngloGold Ashanti’s dividend payout ratio is 70.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on AU shares. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday. Zacks Research lowered shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, December 13th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.50.

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.