Franklin Resources Inc. Increases Stock Position in AngloGold Ashanti PLC $AU

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in AngloGold Ashanti PLC (NYSE:AU) by 8.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,012,801 shares of the mining company’s stock after purchasing an additional 163,680 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in AngloGold Ashanti were worth $171,971,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,777 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $237,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc raised its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 4,246 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $362,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,572 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $305,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 31,919 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $2,245,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 33.4% in the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 599 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. 36.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AngloGold Ashanti Trading Down 0.2%

NYSE:AU opened at $84.34 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.71, a quick ratio of 2.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. AngloGold Ashanti PLC has a 12 month low of $43.44 and a 12 month high of $129.14. The company has a market cap of $42.58 billion, a PE ratio of 12.37 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $97.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $97.24.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 8th. The mining company reported $2.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.25. AngloGold Ashanti had a net margin of 31.11% and a return on equity of 36.41%. The business had revenue of $3.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.26 billion. Research analysts forecast that AngloGold Ashanti PLC will post 9.26 earnings per share for the current year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 29th. This is a positive change from AngloGold Ashanti’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. AngloGold Ashanti’s payout ratio is presently 68.04%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on AU shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Zacks Research downgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Scotiabank cut their target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $134.00 to $133.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $121.00 target price on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $114.00.

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.