Blue Trust Inc. Trims Position in AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU)

Blue Trust Inc. lowered its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU) by 75.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,464 shares of the mining company’s stock after selling 4,527 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in AngloGold Ashanti were worth $34,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 3rd quarter worth $3,010,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 7.0% in the third quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 53,477 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $1,482,000 after purchasing an additional 3,477 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 1.0% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 47,103 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,254,000 after buying an additional 466 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 0.4% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 22,920,684 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $610,378,000 after buying an additional 80,563 shares during the period. Finally, Chesapeake Capital Corp IL increased its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 18.9% in the third quarter. Chesapeake Capital Corp IL now owns 16,770 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $464,000 after buying an additional 2,670 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 36.09% of the company’s stock.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Down 5.6 %

AngloGold Ashanti stock opened at $29.31 on Friday. AngloGold Ashanti plc has a 12-month low of $17.94 and a 12-month high of $33.77. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $28.11 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.74.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The mining company reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $1.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.75 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that AngloGold Ashanti plc will post 3.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.69 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from AngloGold Ashanti’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.22. This represents a yield of 2.8%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on AU. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $36.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. StockNews.com cut shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $37.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AngloGold Ashanti currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $34.00.

About AngloGold Ashanti

AngloGold Ashanti plc operates as a gold mining company in Africa, Australia, and the Americas. The company primarily explores for gold, as well as produces silver and sulphuric acid as by-products. Its flagship property is a 100% owned Geita mine located in the Lake Victoria goldfields of the Mwanza region in north-western Tanzania.