AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) Shares Gap Up to $23.12

AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU) gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $23.12, but opened at $23.86. AngloGold Ashanti shares last traded at $24.14, with a volume of 306,517 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AU. StockNews.com raised shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. HSBC downgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $23.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $24.25.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average of $22.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $19.46.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.19 dividend. This is a boost from AngloGold Ashanti’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.03. This represents a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AngloGold Ashanti

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AU. International Assets Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti in the 4th quarter worth approximately $16,260,000. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in AngloGold Ashanti by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 24,900,771 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $393,432,000 after acquiring an additional 383,360 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank acquired a new stake in AngloGold Ashanti during the 3rd quarter worth about $17,101,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the fourth quarter worth about $1,443,000. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 11.0% during the third quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 55,500 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $899,000 after acquiring an additional 5,500 shares in the last quarter. 36.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AngloGold Ashanti Company Profile

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.