Teacher Retirement System of Texas Has $23.24 Million Stock Position in AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas lowered its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti plc (NYSE:AU) by 45.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,006,907 shares of the mining company’s stock after selling 839,623 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned 0.24% of AngloGold Ashanti worth $23,239,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in AngloGold Ashanti by 210.6% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,174 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 796 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 4th quarter worth approximately $69,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of AngloGold Ashanti during the 4th quarter worth approximately $82,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of AngloGold Ashanti by 378.2% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,782 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $127,000 after purchasing an additional 3,782 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 36.09% of the company’s stock.

AngloGold Ashanti Price Performance

Shares of AU stock opened at $35.43 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $30.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $27.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.73 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The firm has a market cap of $14.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.07 and a beta of 0.92. AngloGold Ashanti plc has a one year low of $20.46 and a one year high of $36.69.

AngloGold Ashanti (NYSE:AU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The mining company reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $1.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.75 billion. On average, analysts expect that AngloGold Ashanti plc will post 3.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AngloGold Ashanti Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.69 dividend. This is an increase from AngloGold Ashanti’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a yield of 2.8%. AngloGold Ashanti’s payout ratio is presently 43.13%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on AU shares. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $30.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on AngloGold Ashanti from $37.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $36.00 price objective on shares of AngloGold Ashanti in a report on Thursday, February 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, AngloGold Ashanti presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $34.00.

AngloGold Ashanti 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.