Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO) Raised to Strong-Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Monday morning.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on RIO. Liberum Capital restated a hold rating on shares of Rio Tinto Group in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Rio Tinto Group in a research report on Friday, January 12th. They issued a buy rating on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $72.00.

Rio Tinto Group Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:RIO opened at $67.49 on Monday. 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 quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.69. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $64.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $67.42.

Rio Tinto Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a $2.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a dividend yield of 6.6%. This is a positive change from Rio Tinto Group’s previous semi-annual dividend of $1.77.

Institutional Trading of Rio Tinto Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 41.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 23,193,773 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,476,052,000 after buying an additional 6,748,799 shares during the last quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda lifted its holdings in Rio Tinto Group by 560.8% during the fourth quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda now owns 791,933 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $58,967,000 after purchasing an additional 672,095 shares during the last quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in Rio Tinto Group during the third quarter valued at about $42,346,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Rio Tinto Group by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 16,045,541 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $1,194,751,000 after purchasing an additional 475,329 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 191.3% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 715,829 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $53,301,000 after buying an additional 470,073 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 19.33% of the company’s stock.

Rio Tinto Group Company Profile

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.