CI Investments Inc. Trims Position in AngloGold Ashanti PLC $AU

CI Investments Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 138,502 shares of the mining company’s stock after selling 28,849 shares during the quarter. CI Investments Inc.’s holdings in AngloGold Ashanti were worth $9,741,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in AngloGold Ashanti during the first quarter worth about $321,000. Amalgamated Bank purchased a new position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,270,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 93.8% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,305,611 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $59,497,000 after acquiring an additional 632,003 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC grew its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 32.7% in the second quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 18,946 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $863,000 after purchasing an additional 4,664 shares during the period. Finally, Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. grew its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 10.2% in the second quarter. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. now owns 20,038 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $913,000 after purchasing an additional 1,847 shares during the period. 36.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on AU shares. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $122.00 price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Friday, February 20th. Wall Street Zen upgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, December 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on AngloGold Ashanti from $128.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Zacks Research downgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AngloGold Ashanti has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.50.

AngloGold Ashanti Trading Down 10.3%

NYSE:AU opened at $115.02 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $103.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $82.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.07 billion, a PE ratio of 22.16 and a beta of 0.55. AngloGold Ashanti PLC has a 12 month low of $29.57 and a 12 month high of $129.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 2.58 and a quick ratio of 1.98.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 20th. The mining company reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90. The business had revenue of $3.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.99 billion. AngloGold Ashanti had a return on equity of 29.70% and a net margin of 26.65%. Research analysts predict that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 3.83 earnings per share 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. Investors 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 yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. AngloGold Ashanti’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.13%.

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.