Nuveen LLC Takes Position in AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU)

Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,002,881 shares of the mining company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,451,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AU. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 11,353 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $424,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 9.4% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 5,799 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $134,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Forefront Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Forefront Wealth Management Inc. now owns 38,529 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,430,000 after purchasing an additional 638 shares during the period. Global Trust Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti during the 1st quarter worth $30,000. Finally, MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti during the 1st quarter worth $30,000. 36.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AU. Scotiabank reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research report on Monday. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research report on Friday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $58.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AngloGold Ashanti has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.60.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Performance

Shares of AU stock opened at $54.34 on Friday. AngloGold Ashanti PLC has a 12 month low of $22.45 and a 12 month high of $59.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a current ratio of 2.34 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.45 and a beta of 0.46. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $49.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $41.48.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The mining company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by ($0.06). AngloGold Ashanti had a return on equity of 24.25% and a net margin of 23.60%. The firm had revenue of $2.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. On average, research analysts anticipate that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 22nd will be paid a $0.80 dividend. This is a boost from AngloGold Ashanti’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.69. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 22nd. This represents a dividend yield of 610.0%. AngloGold Ashanti’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 13.30%.

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.