Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO - Get Free Report) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 7,870,000 shares, an increase of 26.3% from the April 30th total of 6,230,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,200,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.5 days. Currently, 0.6% of the company's shares are sold short.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rio Tinto Group

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its stake in Rio Tinto Group by 74.8% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 493 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the period. Mechanics Financial Corp bought a new stake in Rio Tinto Group during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in Rio Tinto Group during the 1st quarter worth $30,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Rio Tinto Group during the first quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Pandora Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group during the first quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors own 19.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on RIO. Wall Street Zen cut Rio Tinto Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating on shares of Rio Tinto Group in a research note on Tuesday. Clarkson Capital raised shares of Rio Tinto Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Rio Tinto Group in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, DZ Bank raised Rio Tinto Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $73.00.

Rio Tinto Group Stock Performance

NYSE:RIO traded down $0.30 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $58.55. 2,604,195 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,909,116. Rio Tinto Group has a twelve month low of $51.67 and a twelve month high of $72.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $59.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $60.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.73.

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.