5 Gold Stocks to Buy Amid Russian Attack on Ukraine

2. Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 46

Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) is a Canadian mining company that develops and operates gold mining properties in the United States, Argentina, Canada, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Dominican Republic, Mali, and Tanzania. It also deals in copper production in many regions around the world. Hedge fund sentiment was positive on Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) in Q4 2021, with 46 hedge funds holding stakes in the company worth $958.5 million. In contrast, 41 hedge funds were long Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) at the close of the third quarter.

In January, Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) announced that it had met its annual targets for the third year in a row, with preliminary production of gold in 2021 coming in at 4.44 million ounces, well within the estimated target range of 4.4-4.7 million ounces. Copper production for 2021 stood at 415 million pounds, also coming in within the forecasted range of 410-460 million pounds.

On February 16, Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) announced plans for a share repurchase program to buy back $1 billion worth of its outstanding common shares. This repurchase program will be carried out over the next 12 months at prevailing market prices.

Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) reported earnings per share of $0.35 for the fourth quarter, beating consensus estimates by $0.05. The company raked in $3.31 billion in quarterly revenue, outperforming estimates by $113.09 million. As of February 25, Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) shares rose 15.99% in the last 12 months and 18.74% year to date.

Ariel Investments, an investment firm, talked about Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) in its investor letter for Q2 2021. Here’s what the fund said:

“We re-initiated a position in Barrick Gold Corp. (GOLD) in the quarter. Its shares fell -5.56% from our initiation to the end of the quarter as the price of gold trended lower. Gold exceeded $2,000 per ounce in 2020 but has since declined to approximately $1,812 per ounce. Barrick’s shares have often traded at elevated PE multiples. However, at the current reduced stock price, it is trading at a PE multiple of only 16 times next year’s earnings, an attractive opportunity in our opinion, given our expectation of higher inflation and gold’s historic role as an inflationary hedge.”