B2Gold (NYSE:BTG) Earns “Sector Perform” Rating from Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada reiterated their sector perform rating on shares of B2Gold (NYSE:BTG) in a report published on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $3.75 target price on the stock.

BTG has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Cibc World Mkts upgraded B2Gold from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Cormark downgraded B2Gold from a moderate buy rating to a hold rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. CIBC increased their price objective on shares of B2Gold from $3.40 to $3.50 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Scotiabank cut shares of B2Gold from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of B2Gold from $3.50 to $4.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $3.75.

B2Gold Stock Performance

B2Gold stock opened at $3.36 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.39 billion, a P/E ratio of -112.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.14. B2Gold has a one year low of $2.34 and a one year high of $3.46. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $2.88. The company has a current ratio of 2.93, a quick ratio of 1.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

B2Gold (NYSE:BTG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by ($0.02). B2Gold had a positive return on equity of 8.01% and a negative net margin of 7.44%. The company had revenue of $492.57 million for the quarter. Sell-side analysts predict that B2Gold will post 0.27 EPS for the current year.

B2Gold Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.04 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $0.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.76%. B2Gold’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -533.33%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On B2Gold

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BTG. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in B2Gold by 39.4% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 12,284,484 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,053,000 after acquiring an additional 3,474,553 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of B2Gold by 80.0% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 7,450,283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,957,000 after purchasing an additional 3,311,970 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC acquired a new position in B2Gold in the second quarter valued at $6,912,000. Equinox Partners Investment Management LLC lifted its position in B2Gold by 31.6% during the second quarter. Equinox Partners Investment Management LLC now owns 6,032,986 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,185,000 after buying an additional 1,450,000 shares during the period. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC grew its holdings in B2Gold by 133.8% in the 2nd quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 1,977,354 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,334,000 after buying an additional 1,131,534 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.40% of the company’s stock.

About B2Gold

B2Gold Corp. operates as a gold producer company. It operates the Fekola Mine in Mali, the Masbate Mine in the Philippines, and the Otjikoto Mine in Namibia. The company also has an 100% interest in the Gramalote gold project in Colombia; 24% interest in the Calibre Mining Corp.; and approximately 19% interest in BeMetals Corp.