Sibanye Gold (NYSE:SBSW) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Sibanye Gold Limited (NYSE:SBSW) gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $12.26, but opened at $12.76. Sibanye Gold shares last traded at $12.81, with a volume of 1,224,975 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SBSW has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup raised shares of Sibanye Gold from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $13.50 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Sibanye Gold from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Sibanye Gold from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Sibanye Gold in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Sibanye Gold from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $16.82.

Sibanye Gold Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $9.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $11.79.

Insider Activity at Sibanye Gold

In other Sibanye Gold news, Director Richard Peter Menell bought 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 30th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $2.19 per share, for a total transaction of $32,850.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 25,125 shares in the company, valued at $55,023.75. This trade represents a 148.15% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Sibanye Gold

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Sibanye Gold by 113.9% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 39,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $183,000 after buying an additional 21,248 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in Sibanye Gold by 363.7% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,171,659 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,526,000 after acquiring an additional 2,487,648 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in Sibanye Gold by 196.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,576,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,379,000 after acquiring an additional 2,370,443 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Sibanye Gold in the first quarter valued at $55,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Sibanye Gold in the second quarter valued at $186,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 34.93% of the company’s stock.

About Sibanye Gold

Sibanye Gold (NYSE:SBSW) is a precious metals mining company headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa. The company’s core operations focus on the extraction, processing and exploration of gold. Through its South African gold mining operations, Sibanye Gold produces doré bars, gold in concentrate and carbon-in-leach product, leveraging both underground and surface mining techniques. The company also generates by-products such as uranium, copper and nickel, reflecting its commitment to maximizing resource recovery.

In addition to its South African footprint, Sibanye Gold has expanded into the platinum‐group metals (PGM) sector through its acquisition of Stillwater Mining Company in 2017.