Monarch Capital Management Inc. Acquires 9,875 Shares of Rogers Communications Inc. (NYSE:RCI)

Monarch Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Rogers Communications Inc. (NYSE:RCI) (TSE:RCI.B) by 25.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 49,013 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock after buying an additional 9,875 shares during the period. Monarch Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Rogers Communications were worth $1,515,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Canoe Financial LP raised its position in shares of Rogers Communications by 14.7% in the 4th quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 1,299,311 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $39,916,000 after acquiring an additional 166,224 shares in the last quarter. Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new position in Rogers Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $718,000. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in Rogers Communications by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 154,928 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $4,814,000 after purchasing an additional 2,886 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Rogers Communications during the fourth quarter valued at about $12,019,000. Finally, QV Investors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Rogers Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $12,650,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 45.49% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

RCI has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Rogers Communications in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They set an “underweight” rating for the company. Bank of America lowered Rogers Communications from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $61.75.

Rogers Communications Stock Down 1.0 %

NYSE:RCI opened at $28.19 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $32.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $36.71. The company has a market cap of $15.07 billion, a PE ratio of 13.75, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.69. Rogers Communications Inc. has a twelve month low of $27.63 and a twelve month high of $48.19. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.35.

Rogers Communications (NYSE:RCI) (TSE:RCI.B) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The Wireless communications provider reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.35. Rogers Communications had a return on equity of 23.75% and a net margin of 7.34%. The firm had revenue of $5.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.79 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.95 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Rogers Communications Inc. will post 3.52 EPS for the current year.

Rogers Communications Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 9th were paid a $0.3611 dividend. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.12%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 9th. Rogers Communications’s payout ratio is 68.78%.

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.