The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Cuts Holdings in Rogers Communication, Inc. $RCI

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company has reduced its stake in Rogers Communication, Inc. by 25.9%, owning 3,548,264 shares worth approximately $95.28 million.
• Rogers Communication recently reported a quarterly EPS of $0.82, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.80, despite revenue falling short at $3.82 billion against forecasts of $5.12 billion.
• The company announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.3672, reflecting a 4.1% yield, with the next payout scheduled for October 3rd.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lessened its stake in Rogers Communication, Inc. (NYSE:RCI - Free Report) TSE: RCI.B by 25.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,548,264 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock after selling 1,242,760 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.66% of Rogers Communication worth $95,275,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its position in Rogers Communication by 373.1% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 2,870,559 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $76,671,000 after purchasing an additional 2,263,859 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL grew its position in Rogers Communication by 12.2% in the 1st quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 452,127 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $12,085,000 after purchasing an additional 49,125 shares during the period. Walleye Capital LLC bought a new stake in Rogers Communication in the 1st quarter worth approximately $575,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in Rogers Communication by 48.9% in the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 4,231 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $113,000 after purchasing an additional 1,389 shares during the period. Finally, BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp grew its position in Rogers Communication by 26.6% in the 1st quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 212,645 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $5,680,000 after purchasing an additional 44,627 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 45.49% of the company's stock.

Rogers Communication Price Performance

RCI stock traded up $0.09 during trading on Thursday, reaching $35.78. The company's stock had a trading volume of 250,001 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,212,687. Rogers Communication, Inc. has a 1 year low of $23.18 and a 1 year high of $41.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23. The company has a market capitalization of $19.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 0.79. The company's fifty day moving average is $33.73 and its 200-day moving average is $29.07.

Rogers Communication (NYSE:RCI - Get Free Report) TSE: RCI.B last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.02. Rogers Communication had a return on equity of 21.59% and a net margin of 7.33%.The business had revenue of $3.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.16 EPS. Rogers Communication's revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Rogers Communication, Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rogers Communication Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 8th will be paid a $0.3672 dividend. This represents a $1.47 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 8th. This is a boost from Rogers Communication's previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. Rogers Communication's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RCI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Scotiabank reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating on shares of Rogers Communication in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Rogers Communication in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Rogers Communication from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $59.00.

Rogers Communication Profile

Rogers Communications Inc operates as a communications and media company in Canada. It operates through three segments: Wireless, Cable, and Media. The company offers mobile Internet access, wireless voice and enhanced voice, device financing, device protection, global voice and data roaming, wireless home phone, bridging landline, machine-to-machine and Internet of Things solutions, and advanced wireless solutions for businesses, as well as device shipping and express pickup services; and postpaid and prepaid services under the Rogers, Fido, and chatr brands.