Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD) Short Interest Up 62.0% in October

Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD) (TSE:ABX) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 17,881,600 shares, an increase of 62.0% from the October 15th total of 11,035,200 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 20,252,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.9 days. Currently, 1.0% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Barrick Gold Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of GOLD stock opened at $16.64 on Friday. Barrick Gold has a 12-month low of $13.76 and a 12-month high of $21.35. The company has a market capitalization of $29.09 billion, a PE ratio of 18.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 0.56. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $19.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $18.46. The company has a quick ratio of 2.06, a current ratio of 2.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Barrick Gold Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.40%. Barrick Gold’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Scotiabank lowered their target price on Barrick Gold from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 8th. UBS Group lowered Barrick Gold from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $23.00 to $22.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Barrick Gold from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Barrick Gold from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Barrick Gold from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.00 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Barrick Gold currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.90.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Clean Yield Group bought a new stake in shares of Barrick Gold in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its position in shares of Barrick Gold by 198.1% in the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 1,407 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 935 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC raised its stake in Barrick Gold by 628.8% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 1,822 shares of the gold and copper producer’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,572 shares in the last quarter. Jackson Grant Investment Advisers Inc. bought a new stake in Barrick Gold during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in Barrick Gold during the third quarter worth about $32,000. 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.