Centerra Gold Inc. (NYSE:CGAU) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Centerra Gold Inc. (NYSE:CGAU) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,040,000 shares, an increase of 10.3% from the August 31st total of 1,850,000 shares. Currently, 1.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 838,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.4 days.

Centerra Gold Price Performance

NYSE CGAU traded up $0.09 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $7.26. 843,061 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 613,060. Centerra Gold has a 52-week low of $4.47 and a 52-week high of $7.82. The company has a market capitalization of $1.55 billion, a PE ratio of 26.87 and a beta of 0.98. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $6.91 and its 200-day moving average is $6.66.

Centerra Gold (NYSE:CGAU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.07. Centerra Gold had a net margin of 10.68% and a return on equity of 10.72%. The company had revenue of $282.31 million during the quarter. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.20) EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Centerra Gold will post 0.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Centerra Gold Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were paid a $0.051 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.81%. Centerra Gold’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 74.07%.

Institutional Trading of Centerra Gold

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CGAU. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Centerra Gold by 12.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 14,384 shares of the company’s stock valued at $96,000 after buying an additional 1,573 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Centerra Gold in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $113,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale purchased a new stake in shares of Centerra Gold in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $131,000. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Centerra Gold in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $154,000. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its position in shares of Centerra Gold by 184.6% during the 2nd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 27,614 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 17,912 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 55.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CGAU has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Cibc World Mkts downgraded shares of Centerra Gold from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. CIBC restated a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 price target (up previously from $11.00) on shares of Centerra Gold in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $11.00.

About Centerra Gold

Centerra Gold Inc, a gold mining company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and operation of gold and copper properties in North America, Turkey, and internationally. The company explores for gold, copper, and molybdenum deposits. Its flagship projects are the 100% owned Mount Milligan gold-copper mine located in British Columbia, Canada; and the Öksüt gold mine located in Turkey.