AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) Stock Price Up 5.5% – Here’s Why

AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU) shares rose 5.5% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $24.90 and last traded at $24.82. Approximately 925,334 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 45% from the average daily volume of 1,687,330 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.53.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AU. StockNews.com downgraded AngloGold Ashanti from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of AngloGold Ashanti from $37.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “sector underperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and set a $30.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $31.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Investec upgraded shares of AngloGold Ashanti from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AngloGold Ashanti presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.75.

AngloGold Ashanti Stock Up 4.0 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $10.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.64 and a beta of 0.94. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $25.09 and a 200 day moving average of $27.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AngloGold Ashanti

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Chesapeake Capital Corp IL raised its stake in AngloGold Ashanti by 3.1% during the second quarter. Chesapeake Capital Corp IL now owns 14,100 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $354,000 after acquiring an additional 429 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE increased its position in AngloGold Ashanti by 1.0% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 47,103 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,254,000 after buying an additional 466 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 1.0% during the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 64,843 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $1,630,000 after acquiring an additional 656 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its position in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 5.9% during the second quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 12,279 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $309,000 after acquiring an additional 682 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 26,080 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $695,000 after acquiring an additional 1,508 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 36.09% of the company’s stock.

About AngloGold Ashanti

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.