Rogers Communications Inc. (NYSE:RCI) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Rogers Communications Inc. (NYSE:RCI) (TSE:RCI.B) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the six research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have assigned a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $61.75.

RCI has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Rogers Communications from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Rogers Communications in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They set an “underweight” rating on the stock. Finally, TD Securities raised their target price on Rogers Communications from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th.

Rogers Communications Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE RCI opened at $30.75 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $35.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $37.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.00, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.35. Rogers Communications has a 52-week low of $30.24 and a 52-week high of $48.19.

Rogers Communications (NYSE:RCI) (TSE:RCI.B) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The Wireless communications provider reported $1.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analysts’ expectations of $3.79 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.95 EPS. Rogers Communications’s revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Rogers Communications will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Rogers Communications Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.3611 per share. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.70%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 9th. Rogers Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 71.71%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rogers Communications

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in Rogers Communications by 371.0% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 5,053,559 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $203,334,000 after purchasing an additional 3,980,525 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Rogers Communications by 106.5% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 133,760 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $5,383,000 after buying an additional 68,971 shares during the last quarter. MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Rogers Communications in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $726,000. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its holdings in Rogers Communications by 1,046.8% in the third quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 599,476 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $24,101,000 after buying an additional 547,201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank increased its holdings in Rogers Communications by 53.9% in the second quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 6,303,371 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $233,099,000 after buying an additional 2,206,690 shares during the last quarter. 45.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.