Vest Financial LLC Buys 20,474 Shares of Rogers Communications Inc. (NYSE:RCI)

Vest Financial LLC increased its stake in Rogers Communications Inc. (NYSE:RCI - Free Report) TSE: RCI.B by 83.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 45,097 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock after purchasing an additional 20,474 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC's holdings in Rogers Communications were worth $1,205,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. FIL Ltd raised its holdings in Rogers Communications by 7.2% during the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 33,450,577 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock valued at $1,028,336,000 after acquiring an additional 2,244,240 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its holdings in shares of Rogers Communications by 20.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 7,736,202 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $237,784,000 after purchasing an additional 1,320,200 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in Rogers Communications by 123.5% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 6,727,400 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $206,565,000 after buying an additional 3,717,487 shares in the last quarter. Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. raised its stake in Rogers Communications by 23.5% in the fourth quarter. Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. now owns 5,210,380 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $160,094,000 after buying an additional 992,780 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Scotia Capital Inc. raised its stake in Rogers Communications by 18.3% in the fourth quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 3,697,645 shares of the Wireless communications provider's stock worth $113,217,000 after buying an additional 572,270 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 45.49% of the company's stock.

Rogers Communications Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of RCI stock opened at $26.59 on Friday. Rogers Communications Inc. has a 12-month low of $23.18 and a 12-month high of $41.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67. The firm's 50 day moving average is $25.56 and its 200 day moving average is $28.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.73.

Rogers Communications (NYSE:RCI - Get Free Report) TSE: RCI.B last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.71 by ($0.02). Rogers Communications had a return on equity of 25.19% and a net margin of 8.40%. The company had revenue of $3.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.99 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Rogers Communications Inc. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Rogers Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, June 9th will be issued a $0.3611 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.43%. This is a boost from Rogers Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Rogers Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group raised shares of Rogers Communications from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Scotiabank lowered shares of Rogers Communications from a "sector outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $67.00.

About Rogers Communications

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.

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