Dana Investment Advisors Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO)

Dana Investment Advisors Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO) by 3.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 25,660 shares of the mining company’s stock after selling 800 shares during the quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Rio Tinto Group were worth $1,509,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of RIO. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 49.1% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 820 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 4.3% during the third quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,261 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $303,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 16.8% during the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 37,984 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $2,703,000 after purchasing an additional 5,469 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. raised its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 2.3% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 63,410 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $4,513,000 after purchasing an additional 1,401 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. raised its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 53.8% during the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 89,466 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $6,367,000 after purchasing an additional 31,290 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 19.33% of the company’s stock.

Rio Tinto Group Stock Down 2.5 %

Rio Tinto Group stock opened at $62.33 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $78.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.60. Rio Tinto Group has a fifty-two week low of $57.85 and a fifty-two week high of $74.24. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $61.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.90.

Rio Tinto Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $2.23 dividend. This is a positive change from Rio Tinto Group’s previous semi-annual dividend of $1.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a yield of 7%. Rio Tinto Group’s dividend payout ratio is 69.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on RIO. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Rio Tinto Group from $83.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com cut Rio Tinto Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 22nd. Finally, Clarkson Capital upgraded Rio Tinto Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $73.00.

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.