Rogers Communications Inc. (NYSE:RCI) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Rogers Communications Inc. (NYSE:RCI) (TSE:RCI.B) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the eight brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have issued a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $67.00.

RCI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Scotiabank lowered Rogers Communications from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Canaccord Genuity Group raised Rogers Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Rogers Communications in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st.

Rogers Communications Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RCI opened at $25.87 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $25.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $29.22. Rogers Communications has a 1-year low of $23.18 and a 1-year high of $41.84. The firm has a market cap of $13.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67.

Rogers Communications (NYSE:RCI) (TSE:RCI.B) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.71 by ($0.02). Rogers Communications had a net margin of 8.40% and a return on equity of 25.19%. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.96 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.99 earnings per share. Rogers Communications’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Rogers Communications will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Rogers Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 9th will be given a dividend of $0.3611 per share. This is an increase from Rogers Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 9th. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.58%. Rogers Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.66%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Rogers Communications

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Rogers Communications by 885.4% in the first quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 946 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 850 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rogers Communications by 95.1% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,526 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 744 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in shares of Rogers Communications by 141.4% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,796 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $55,000 after buying an additional 1,052 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of Rogers Communications in the first quarter worth about $79,000. Finally, CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rogers Communications by 57.4% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,736 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $100,000 after buying an additional 1,363 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.49% of the company’s stock.

About Rogers Communications

Rogers Communications Inc operates as a communications and media company in Canada. It operates through three segments: Wireless, Cable, and Media. The company offers mobile Internet access, wireless voice and enhanced voice, device financing, device protection, global voice and data roaming, wireless home phone, bridging landline, machine-to-machine and Internet of Things solutions, and advanced wireless solutions for businesses, as well as device shipping and express pickup services; and postpaid and prepaid services under the Rogers, Fido, and chatr brands.