Royal Bank of Canada Boosts Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD) Price Target to $23.00

Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD) (TSE:ABX) had its target price hoisted by equities researchers at Royal Bank of Canada from $22.00 to $23.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “outperform” rating on the gold and copper producer’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 27.60% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of Barrick Gold from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Raymond James boosted their price target on Barrick Gold from $23.00 to $23.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. TD Securities lowered their price objective on Barrick Gold from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Stifel Canada raised Barrick Gold to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on Barrick Gold from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.79.

Barrick Gold Stock Down 7.0 %

Shares of NYSE:GOLD traded down $1.36 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $18.03. 8,832,969 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 22,988,457. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $18.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $18.03. The firm has a market cap of $31.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.65, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 2.15 and a current ratio of 2.89. Barrick Gold has a 52-week low of $15.11 and a 52-week high of $21.35.

Barrick Gold (NYSE:GOLD) (TSE:ABX) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 16.59% and a return on equity of 6.76%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Barrick Gold will post 1.47 EPS for the current year.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Barrick Gold

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Versant Capital Management Inc acquired a new position in Barrick Gold in the first quarter valued at approximately $97,000. Confluence Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Barrick Gold by 6.9% in the 1st quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 31,798 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock worth $618,000 after purchasing an additional 2,047 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in Barrick Gold by 55.8% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 2,193 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 785 shares during the period. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd bought a new position in Barrick Gold during the 4th quarter worth $2,868,000. Finally, Chancellor Financial Group WB LP bought a new position in Barrick Gold during the 4th quarter worth $298,000. Institutional investors own 62.85% of the company’s stock.

About Barrick Gold

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.