Rio Tinto PLC (NYSE:RIO) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Rio Tinto PLC has an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from nine analysts, with a consensus twelve-month target price of $73.00.
• Institutional investors have recently increased their stakes in Rio Tinto, with Fisher Asset Management raising its position by 4.2% in the second quarter.
• The company recently declared a semi-annual dividend of $1.48 per share, with a yield of 620.0% and a payout ratio of 45.74%.

Rio Tinto PLC (NYSE:RIO - Get Free Report) has received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the nine brokerages that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, three have assigned a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $73.00.

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Rio Tinto in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Rio Tinto in a report on Monday, July 14th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Rio Tinto in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Rio Tinto from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Berenberg Bank reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Rio Tinto in a report on Thursday, July 3rd.

Institutional Trading of Rio Tinto

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RIO. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Rio Tinto by 4.2% during the second quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 18,562,934 shares of the mining company's stock worth $1,082,776,000 after purchasing an additional 752,505 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Rio Tinto by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 8,368,620 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $502,787,000 after purchasing an additional 326,661 shares in the last quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its holdings in Rio Tinto by 77,150.0% in the 1st quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 7,416,000 shares of the mining company's stock worth $445,553,000 after acquiring an additional 7,406,400 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Rio Tinto by 0.4% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,496,126 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $320,589,000 after buying an additional 20,138 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rio Tinto during the 2nd quarter valued at $292,770,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 19.33% of the company's stock.

Rio Tinto Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RIO traded down $0.06 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $63.59. The company had a trading volume of 547,351 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,280,825. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $61.94 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.53. The firm has a market cap of $79.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.87 and a beta of 0.66. Rio Tinto has a one year low of $51.67 and a one year high of $72.08.

Rio Tinto Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $1.48 dividend. This represents a yield of 620.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Rio Tinto's dividend payout ratio is presently 45.74%.

About Rio Tinto

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.