Morgan Stanley Downgrades Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO) to Equal Weight

Rio Tinto Group (NYSE:RIO) was downgraded by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports.

A number of other research firms have also commented on RIO. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Rio Tinto Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Rio Tinto Group from $83.00 to $73.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Clarkson Capital upgraded shares of Rio Tinto Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Rio Tinto Group in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. They issued an “overweight” rating on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Rio Tinto Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $73.00.

Rio Tinto Group Stock Down 1.4 %

RIO opened at $54.81 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $68.73 billion, a PE ratio of 8.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.66. 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 52 week low of $51.67 and a 52 week high of $74.24. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $61.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $62.39.

Institutional Trading of Rio Tinto Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC raised its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 8,113 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $477,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Capital Analysts LLC lifted its stake in Rio Tinto Group by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 2,886 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $170,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the period. Nemes Rush Group LLC boosted its holdings in Rio Tinto Group by 10.0% in the fourth quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 1,855 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $109,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its holdings in Rio Tinto Group by 63.9% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 500 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares during the period. Finally, Cohen Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Rio Tinto Group by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,352 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $315,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the period. 19.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Rio Tinto Group 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.