Ritholtz Wealth Management Has $5.71 Million Stock Holdings in Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO)

Ritholtz Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 76,746 shares of the mining company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,287 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Rio Tinto Group were worth $5,714,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Rio Tinto Group by 23.9% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 61,529 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $4,947,000 after buying an additional 11,879 shares during the period. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC increased its position in Rio Tinto Group by 33.8% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC now owns 6,549 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $527,000 after buying an additional 1,654 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. increased its position in Rio Tinto Group by 19.4% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 1,539,846 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $123,803,000 after buying an additional 250,480 shares during the period. Vontobel Holding Ltd. bought a new position in Rio Tinto Group during the 1st quarter worth $499,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in Rio Tinto Group by 141.7% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 13,466 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,083,000 after buying an additional 7,894 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 19.33% of the company’s stock.

Rio Tinto Group Price Performance

Shares of RIO stock opened at $63.74 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $66.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $66.89. Rio Tinto Group has a 12 month low of $58.27 and a 12 month high of $75.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 1.69 and a quick ratio of 1.17.

Rio Tinto Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th will be issued a dividend of $2.58 per share. This is a positive change from Rio Tinto Group’s previous semi-annual dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 7th. This represents a yield of 6.6%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on RIO shares. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Rio Tinto Group in a research report on Friday, January 12th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded Rio Tinto Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. BNP Paribas upgraded Rio Tinto Group from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 5th. Finally, Liberum Capital reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Rio Tinto Group in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.00.

About Rio Tinto Group

Rio Tinto Group engages in exploring, mining, and processing mineral resources worldwide. The company operates through Iron Ore, Aluminium, Copper, and Minerals Segments. The Iron Ore segment engages in the iron ore mining, and salt and gypsum production in Western Australia. The Aluminum segment is involved in bauxite mining; alumina refining; and aluminium smelting.