Rio Tinto PLC (NYSE:RIO) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Rio Tinto PLC (NYSE:RIO) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nine brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $73.00.

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on RIO. Berenberg Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Rio Tinto in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Rio Tinto in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Rio Tinto from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Rio Tinto in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Rio Tinto in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Rio Tinto by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 18,562,934 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $1,082,776,000 after purchasing an additional 752,505 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Rio Tinto by 4.1% in 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 during the last quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co grew its stake in shares of 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 valued at $445,553,000 after purchasing an additional 7,406,400 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Rio Tinto by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,496,126 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $320,589,000 after purchasing an additional 20,138 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC purchased a new position in shares of Rio Tinto in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $292,770,000. 19.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rio Tinto Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RIO opened at $62.38 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.53. Rio Tinto has a fifty-two week low of $51.67 and a fifty-two week high of $72.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.23 billion, a PE ratio of 9.67 and a beta of 0.64. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $60.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $60.34.

Rio Tinto Cuts Dividend

The firm 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 dividend of $1.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a yield of 620.0%. Rio Tinto’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.74%.

Rio Tinto 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.