Sibanye Gold (NYSE:SBSW) Shares Gap Down After Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Sibanye Gold Limited (NYSE:SBSW) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday after Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on the stock from $18.00 to $17.00. The stock had previously closed at $15.88, but opened at $15.08. Royal Bank Of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Sibanye Gold shares last traded at $15.4150, with a volume of 1,923,949 shares traded.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Sibanye Gold from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Sibanye Gold in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. HSBC upgraded Sibanye Gold from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $24.80 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Sibanye Gold from $14.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Sibanye Gold from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $19.93.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sibanye Gold

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Foster Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sibanye Gold during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,424,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in shares of Sibanye Gold by 1,136.5% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 3,495,525 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,238,000 after acquiring an additional 3,212,833 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Sibanye Gold by 32,992.0% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,405,288 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,246,000 after purchasing an additional 6,385,932 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its stake in Sibanye Gold by 3,802.4% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 254,633 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,862,000 after purchasing an additional 248,108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Sibanye Gold by 31.2% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,996,606 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,415,000 after purchasing an additional 474,386 shares in the last quarter. 34.93% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sibanye Gold Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 2.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $16.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $12.44.

About Sibanye Gold

Sibanye Gold (NYSE:SBSW) is a precious metals mining company headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa. The company’s core operations focus on the extraction, processing and exploration of gold. Through its South African gold mining operations, Sibanye Gold produces doré bars, gold in concentrate and carbon-in-leach product, leveraging both underground and surface mining techniques. The company also generates by-products such as uranium, copper and nickel, reflecting its commitment to maximizing resource recovery.

In addition to its South African footprint, Sibanye Gold has expanded into the platinum‐group metals (PGM) sector through its acquisition of Stillwater Mining Company in 2017.