Rogers Communications Inc. (NYSE:RCI) Short Interest Up 27.6% in February

Rogers Communications Inc. (NYSE:RCI) (TSE:RCI.B) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 9,560,000 shares, an increase of 27.6% from the February 13th total of 7,490,000 shares. Currently, 2.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,170,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 8.2 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on RCI shares. Barclays reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating on shares of Rogers Communications in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Bank of America downgraded Rogers Communications from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley started coverage on Rogers Communications in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “underweight” rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.75.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rogers Communications

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Rogers Communications in the 3rd quarter worth $314,000. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Rogers Communications by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 24,948 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $1,003,000 after buying an additional 3,547 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Rogers Communications by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 1,080,000 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $43,494,000 after buying an additional 8,400 shares during the period. PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Rogers Communications by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. PCJ Investment Counsel Ltd. now owns 247,530 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $9,952,000 after buying an additional 7,050 shares during the period. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Rogers Communications by 86.6% in the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 2,610,833 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $104,965,000 after buying an additional 1,211,482 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.49% of the company’s stock.

Rogers Communications Stock Performance

NYSE RCI opened at $28.63 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $15.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.66. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $28.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $33.56. Rogers Communications has a fifty-two week low of $26.57 and a fifty-two week high of $42.96.

Rogers Communications (NYSE:RCI) (TSE:RCI.B) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The Wireless communications provider reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.07. Rogers Communications had a return on equity of 25.19% and a net margin of 8.40%. Sell-side analysts predict that Rogers Communications will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Rogers Communications Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.347 per share. This represents a $1.39 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Rogers Communications’s payout ratio is currently 59.48%.

Rogers Communications Company Profile

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.