JOHANNESBURG, Feb 19 (Reuters) - AngloGold Ashanti ( AU )

is boosting payouts to investors, it said on Wednesday,

after its profit surged to $954 million last year from a loss of

$46 million in the prior year, buoyed by the precious metal's

rally to record highs.

Shares in the company however fell as much as 7.4% in early

trading in New York.

A sharp increase in planned spending at projects, including

at the Sukari mine in Egypt which the company recently bought

from Centamin, seems to have unnerved investors, Nedbank Group

analyst Arnold Van Graan said.

"This appears to have a negative light on the results and

outlook," Van Graan said in a note.

The gold producer raised its output forecast for this year

to between 2.9 million ounces and 3.2 million ounces from about

2.7 million ounces produced last year. AngloGold said it is

raising output after buying Centamin assets last year.

The company declared a final dividend of 91 U.S. cents per

share, or about $439 million, against 19 U.S. cents a share in

the prior year. The miner said it was changing its dividend

policy to target a 50% payout of free cash flow.

CEO Alberto Calderon said the gold price rally had given

AngloGold the strongest balance sheet position in more than a

decade, and it is "able to pass on those benefits to

shareholders in a more generous dividend policy".

Peers, including Barrick Gold ( GOLD ), have also increased

returns to investors.

AngloGold's stock is still up 67% in a year, driven by the

move of its primary listing to New York, as well as the bullion

rally, LSEG data shows.