Financial Counselors Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO)

Financial Counselors Inc. increased its stake in Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO) by 3.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,866 shares of the mining company’s stock after buying an additional 221 shares during the period. Financial Counselors Inc.’s holdings in Rio Tinto Group were worth $437,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 10.9% in the 3rd quarter. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,732 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $556,000 after buying an additional 858 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. grew its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 18.3% in the 3rd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 721,662 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $45,926,000 after buying an additional 111,623 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,464,344 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $284,111,000 after buying an additional 118,706 shares during the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 88.2% in the 4th quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,221 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $612,000 after buying an additional 3,852 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LPL Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 369,931 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $23,542,000 after buying an additional 14,083 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 19.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Rio Tinto Group in a research note on Friday, January 12th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Liberum Capital reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Rio Tinto Group in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Rio Tinto Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Rio Tinto Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.00.

Rio Tinto Group Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE RIO opened at $65.99 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $65.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $66.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 1.69 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Rio Tinto Group has a 1-year low of $58.27 and a 1-year high of $75.09.

Rio Tinto Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th will be issued a dividend of $2.58 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 6.6%. This is a boost from Rio Tinto Group’s previous semi-annual dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 7th.

Rio Tinto Group 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.