Rio Tinto PLC $RIO Shares Sold by Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. reduced its position in shares of Rio Tinto PLC (NYSE:RIO) by 56.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,978 shares of the mining company’s stock after selling 26,744 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Rio Tinto were worth $1,679,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Rio Tinto by 3.0% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 19,120,168 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,262,122,000 after purchasing an additional 557,234 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of Rio Tinto by 31.9% during the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,157,545 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $208,430,000 after purchasing an additional 763,786 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in shares of Rio Tinto by 10.2% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 2,045,636 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $135,032,000 after purchasing an additional 190,029 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Rio Tinto by 9.3% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,009,293 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $132,622,000 after purchasing an additional 171,716 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Rio Tinto by 7.4% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,672,792 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $110,421,000 after purchasing an additional 115,483 shares in the last quarter. 19.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Rio Tinto Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:RIO opened at $106.54 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.44. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $98.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $89.23. Rio Tinto PLC has a 12-month low of $55.64 and a 12-month high of $112.58.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on RIO. Zacks Research cut shares of Rio Tinto from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Bank of America cut shares of Rio Tinto from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Rio Tinto from $82.00 to $83.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. DZ Bank lowered shares of Rio Tinto from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Rio Tinto from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Rio Tinto presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.75.

About Rio Tinto

Rio Tinto is a global mining and metals company that explores for, mines, processes and markets a wide range of commodities. Its principal products include iron ore, aluminum, copper, diamonds and various other minerals and industrial materials. The company’s activities span the full value chain from exploration and project development to mining, processing, smelting and refining, supplying raw materials to industries such as steelmaking, automotive, packaging, electronics and construction.

The origins of Rio Tinto date back to mining operations in the Rio Tinto region of Spain in the 19th century, and the group has since grown into a multinational enterprise.