Sowell Financial Services LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Rio Tinto PLC $RIO

Sowell Financial Services LLC lessened its holdings in Rio Tinto PLC (NYSE:RIO) by 42.2% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 12,291 shares of the mining company’s stock after selling 8,964 shares during the quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Rio Tinto were worth $717,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in RIO. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its stake in shares of Rio Tinto by 77,150.0% in the first quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 7,416,000 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $445,553,000 after buying an additional 7,406,400 shares in the last quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Rio Tinto during the 2nd quarter worth $292,770,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Rio Tinto by 33.9% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,938,247 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $116,510,000 after purchasing an additional 490,357 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Rio Tinto by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 8,368,620 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $502,787,000 after purchasing an additional 326,661 shares during the period. Finally, Pacific Heights Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Rio Tinto by 300.0% in the 1st quarter. Pacific Heights Asset Management LLC now owns 300,000 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $18,024,000 after purchasing an additional 225,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 19.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on RIO shares. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Rio Tinto in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of Rio Tinto from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Rio Tinto in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Rio Tinto in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Berenberg Bank reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Rio Tinto in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $73.00.

Rio Tinto Price Performance

RIO stock opened at $63.90 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.53. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $62.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $60.40. The firm has a market cap of $80.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.91 and a beta of 0.66. Rio Tinto PLC has a 1 year low of $51.67 and a 1 year high of $72.08.

Rio Tinto Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $1.48 per share. This represents a yield of 620.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Rio Tinto’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.