THE RIO TINTO PLC (RIO) RAISES DIVIDEND TO $1.26 PER SHARE

Rio Tinto PLC (NYSE:rio) declared a dividend on Thursday, February 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 24th will be given a dividend of 1.258 per share by the mining company on Friday, February 24th. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 22nd. This is a positive change from Rio Tinto PLC’s previous dividend of $0.45.

Rio Tinto PLC (NYSE:RIO) opened at 43.14 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $77.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 1960.91 and a beta of 1.19. Rio Tinto PLC has a 12-month low of $25.06 and a 12-month high of $46.04. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $41.91 and its 200 day moving average is $36.15.

RIO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Argus boosted their target price on shares of Rio Tinto PLC from $36.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 1st. Credit Suisse Group upgraded shares of Rio Tinto PLC from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 7th. They noted that the move was a valuation call. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Rio Tinto PLC in a research report on Thursday, October 27th. Deutsche Bank AG restated a “buy” rating on shares of Rio Tinto PLC in a research report on Wednesday, December 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated a “buy” rating on shares of Rio Tinto PLC in a research report on Saturday, January 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. Rio Tinto PLC presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $37.00.

About Rio Tinto PLC

Rio Tinto plc is a mining company. The Company focuses on finding, mining, processing and marketing the Earth’s mineral resources. The Company’s segments include aluminum, copper and coal, diamonds and minerals, and iron ore. The Company’s aluminum business includes bauxite mines, alumina refineries and aluminum smelters.