Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO - Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of "Moderate Buy" by the twelve ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have issued a buy recommendation and three have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $73.00.

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on RIO shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Rio Tinto Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley lowered Rio Tinto Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Rio Tinto Group in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. DZ Bank raised shares of Rio Tinto Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Clarkson Capital raised shares of Rio Tinto Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th.

Institutional Trading of Rio Tinto Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its position in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 8,113 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $477,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Capital Analysts LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 2,886 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $170,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 1,855 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $109,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its position in Rio Tinto Group by 63.9% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 500 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the period. Finally, Cohen Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,352 shares of the mining company's stock worth $315,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. 19.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rio Tinto Group Trading Down 0.0 %

RIO stock traded down $0.03 on Wednesday, reaching $60.53. The company's stock had a trading volume of 616,860 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,855,681. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.63. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $60.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $61.52. The firm has a market cap of $75.90 billion, a PE ratio of 9.38, a PEG ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.66. Rio Tinto Group has a 12-month low of $51.67 and a 12-month high of $74.24.

Rio Tinto Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $2.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a dividend yield of 7%. This is an increase from Rio Tinto Group's previous semi-annual dividend of $1.77. Rio Tinto Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.15%.

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.