B2Gold (TSE:BTO) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at TD Securities

TD Securities upgraded shares of B2Gold (TSE:BTO) (NYSE:BTG) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

BTO has been the topic of several other reports. ATB Cormark Capital Markets raised B2Gold from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from C$6.50 to C$11.00 in a research report on Monday. Scotiabank raised B2Gold from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday. TD upgraded B2Gold from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from C$6.00 to C$8.50 in a research note on Monday. National Bank Financial dropped their target price on B2Gold from C$10.70 to C$9.75 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Scotia upgraded B2Gold from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and set a C$10.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of C$9.33.

B2Gold Price Performance

B2Gold stock opened at C$7.04 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of C$5.69 and a 200-day moving average of C$6.43. B2Gold has a 52-week low of C$4.81 and a 52-week high of C$8.60. The company has a quick ratio of 3.33, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.48. The firm has a market capitalization of C$9.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.53, a PEG ratio of -0.27 and a beta of 1.74.

B2Gold (TSE:BTO) (NYSE:BTG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported C$0.04 earnings per share for the quarter. B2Gold had a net margin of 21.20% and a return on equity of 21.87%. The business had revenue of C$1.12 billion for the quarter. As a group, analysts predict that B2Gold will post 0.5596659 EPS for the current year.

B2Gold Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd were paid a dividend of $0.02 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 10th. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. B2Gold’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling at B2Gold

In related news, insider Ninette Krohnert sold 4,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of C$5.88, for a total value of C$27,636.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 62,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$367,835.16. This represents a 6.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Also, insider Randall Chatwin sold 22,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of C$5.70, for a total value of C$125,400.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 119,989 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately C$683,937.30. This trade represents a 15.49% decrease in their position. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 227,252 shares of company stock valued at $1,401,375. Company insiders own 0.66% of the company’s stock.

B2Gold News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting B2Gold this week:

• Positive Sentiment: B2Gold received approval for the Fekola Regional exploitation permit in Mali. The authorization reduces regulatory uncertainty and supports the company’s plans to develop additional resources around its important Fekola complex. B2Gold up 22% as it receives green light for Mali
• Positive Sentiment: The Mali permit announcement helped make B2Gold one of the TSX’s top gainers, aided by strength in gold prices. Higher bullion prices can improve revenue, margins and cash flow for gold producers. B2Gold makes TSX top gainer as gold prices gain and Fekola permit is granted
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment strengthened materially. TD Securities raised B2Gold from “hold” to “buy” and increased its price target to C$8.50 from C$6.00, while Scotiabank upgraded the shares to “sector outperform” with a C$10.00 target. Analyst ratings from BayStreet
• Positive Sentiment: ATB Cormark upgraded B2Gold to “outperform” and lifted its target to C$11.00 from C$6.50. TD Securities and Scotiabank subsequently characterized the stock as a “strong buy,” reinforcing the bullish view on the permit and gold-price outlook. B2Gold analyst upgrades from Zacks
• Negative Sentiment: B2Gold’s permit win followed a reduction to production guidance, indicating that permitting delays or operating challenges could weigh on near-term output and earnings. Investors may continue to monitor execution at Fekola and the timing of regional development. B2Gold wins Mali permit after guidance cut

B2Gold Company Profile

B2Gold is a responsible international gold producer headquartered in Vancouver, Canada. Founded in 2007, today, B2Gold has operating gold mines in Canada, Mali, Namibia and the Philippines, and numerous development and exploration projects in various countries.