Korea Investment CORP Reduces Stock Holdings in Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD)

Korea Investment CORP lowered its stake in shares of Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD) (TSE:ABX) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,358,081 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock after selling 25,989 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP owned 0.08% of Barrick Gold worth $21,048,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Barrick Gold during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Barrick Gold by 619.7% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 3,073 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 2,646 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its position in Barrick Gold by 196.9% in the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 4,178 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 2,771 shares during the period. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in Barrick Gold in the fourth quarter worth about $65,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of Barrick Gold by 119.4% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 4,848 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 2,638 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.85% of the company’s stock.

Barrick Gold Stock Performance

Shares of GOLD stock opened at $19.11 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $32.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.53, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.58. Barrick Gold Corp has a 52-week low of $15.11 and a 52-week high of $21.35. The company has a quick ratio of 2.15, a current ratio of 2.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company’s 50 day moving average is $17.85 and its 200 day moving average is $18.04.

Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD) (TSE:ABX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The gold and copper producer reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46. Barrick Gold had a return on equity of 6.76% and a net margin of 16.59%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Barrick Gold Corp will post 1.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Barrick Gold declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, February 12th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the gold and copper producer to reacquire up to 3.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Barrick Gold Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Barrick Gold’s payout ratio is 32.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on GOLD shares. UBS Group upgraded Barrick Gold from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $22.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. TD Securities decreased their target price on Barrick Gold from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Raymond James cut their price target on shares of Barrick Gold from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Stifel Canada upgraded shares of Barrick Gold to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of Barrick Gold from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.75.

Barrick Gold Company Profile

Barrick Gold Corporation is a sector-leading gold and copper producer.  Its shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol GOLD and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol ABX.
 
In January 2019 Barrick merged with Randgold Resources and in July that year it combined its gold mines in Nevada, USA, with those of Newmont Corporation in a joint venture, Nevada Gold Mines, which is majority-owned and operated by Barrick.