Wells Fargo & Company MN Trims Stock Position in Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO)

Wells Fargo & Company MN cut its stake in Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 895,744 shares of the mining company’s stock after selling 14,715 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN owned about 0.07% of Rio Tinto Group worth $52,679,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Jeppson Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 47.5% during the fourth quarter. Jeppson Wealth Management LLC now owns 20,093 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,182,000 after acquiring an additional 6,473 shares during the period. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Rio Tinto Group by 225.6% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 335,637 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $23,888,000 after buying an additional 232,539 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Rio Tinto Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $810,000. Palliser Capital UK Ltd increased its holdings in Rio Tinto Group by 213.8% in the fourth quarter. Palliser Capital UK Ltd now owns 989,417 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $58,188,000 after buying an additional 674,117 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group increased its holdings in Rio Tinto Group by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 32,258 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $1,890,000 after buying an additional 1,009 shares in the last quarter. 19.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Rio Tinto Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:RIO opened at $55.65 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Rio Tinto Group has a fifty-two week low of $51.67 and a fifty-two week high of $74.24. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $62.48. The company has a market cap of $69.79 billion, a PE ratio of 8.63, a P/E/G ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.66.

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 paid a dividend of $2.23 per share. This represents a yield of 7%. 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. Rio Tinto Group’s payout ratio is presently 69.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

RIO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Clarkson Capital raised shares of Rio Tinto Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Rio Tinto Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Rio Tinto Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Rio Tinto Group from $83.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Rio Tinto Group in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. They set an “overweight” rating on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Rio Tinto Group has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $73.00.

About Rio Tinto Group

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.