Royal Fund Management LLC Acquires 16,800 Shares of Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO)

Royal Fund Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO - Free Report) by 141.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 28,650 shares of the mining company's stock after acquiring an additional 16,800 shares during the quarter. Royal Fund Management LLC's holdings in Rio Tinto Group were worth $2,133,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position 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 purchasing an additional 6,748,799 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Rio Tinto Group by 3.1% in 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 buying an additional 475,329 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its stake in Rio Tinto Group by 2.7% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,464,344 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $284,111,000 after buying an additional 118,706 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Rio Tinto Group by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 2,903,093 shares of the mining company's stock worth $184,721,000 after buying an additional 161,532 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,893,222 shares of the mining company's stock worth $120,485,000 after acquiring an additional 17,401 shares in the last quarter. 19.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rio Tinto Group Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of RIO stock traded up $0.66 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $68.94. The stock had a trading volume of 3,193,760 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,270,538. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $65.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $67.52. Rio Tinto Group has a twelve month low of $58.27 and a twelve month high of $75.09. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Rio Tinto Group Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RIO has been the subject of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Rio Tinto Group in a report on Friday, January 12th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. StockNews.com raised shares of Rio Tinto Group from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Liberum Capital reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Rio Tinto Group in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Two equities research 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently 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.