Equinox Gold (NYSEAMERICAN:EQX) Shares Up 5.7% After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Equinox Gold Corp. (NYSEAMERICAN:EQX) rose 5.7% during trading on Monday after Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating. The company traded as high as $17.64 and last traded at $17.7650. Approximately 1,133,692 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 10,587,960 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.81.

EQX has been the subject of several other reports. Stifel Nicolaus initiated coverage on shares of Equinox Gold in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Equinox Gold in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Zacks Research upgraded Equinox Gold from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Equinox Gold in a report on Monday, January 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $17.00.

Institutional Trading of Equinox Gold

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Equinox Gold by 91.3% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 96,024,048 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,077,394,000 after purchasing an additional 45,820,861 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Equinox Gold by 11.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 30,714,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $431,665,000 after purchasing an additional 3,250,135 shares during the last quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Equinox Gold by 11.1% in the 2nd quarter. Donald Smith & CO. Inc. now owns 26,507,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $152,419,000 after purchasing an additional 2,643,856 shares during the period. L1 Capital Pty Ltd raised its position in Equinox Gold by 120.4% in the second quarter. L1 Capital Pty Ltd now owns 23,908,865 shares of the company’s stock worth $137,476,000 after acquiring an additional 13,060,846 shares during the period. Finally, FIL Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Equinox Gold during the 4th quarter worth $332,888,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 38.85% of the company’s stock.

Equinox Gold Stock Down 2.3%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $15.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.52. The firm has a market cap of $14.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 75.46 and a beta of 1.24.

Equinox Gold Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 12th will be issued a $0.015 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 12th. This represents a $0.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%.

Equinox Gold Company Profile

Equinox Gold Corp is a Canadian gold mining company headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia. The company focuses on the acquisition, development, and operation of gold properties, with an emphasis on open-pit heap leach mining. Since its inception, Equinox Gold has pursued a strategy of combining assets in established jurisdictions to build a diversified portfolio that balances production and growth, while maintaining rigorous safety and environmental standards.

Equinox Gold’s operating portfolio spans three countries.