Gabelli Funds LLC Acquires 17,500 Shares of Rogers Communications Inc. (NYSE:RCI)

Gabelli Funds LLC raised its holdings in Rogers Communications Inc. (NYSE:RCI) (TSE:RCI.B) by 1.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,224,000 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,500 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC owned about 0.23% of Rogers Communications worth $45,264,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Rogers Communications in the first quarter valued at about $835,000. Barometer Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Rogers Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,092,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new position in Rogers Communications in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,719,000. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its position in Rogers Communications by 19.3% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 1,532,864 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $71,988,000 after acquiring an additional 247,496 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Rogers Communications by 8.6% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 195,754 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $8,040,000 after purchasing an additional 15,454 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 45.49% of the company’s stock.

Rogers Communications Stock Performance

Shares of RCI stock opened at $40.36 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $39.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $39.35. Rogers Communications Inc. has a one year low of $35.55 and a one year high of $48.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.39 billion, a PE ratio of 50.45, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.58, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.60.

Rogers Communications (NYSE:RCI) (TSE:RCI.B) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The Wireless communications provider reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.33. Rogers Communications had a return on equity of 23.15% and a net margin of 4.28%. The business had revenue of $5.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.14 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.76 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Rogers Communications Inc. will post 3.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Rogers Communications Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be paid a $0.365 dividend. This represents a $1.46 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. Rogers Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 185.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on RCI shares. Canaccord Genuity Group cut Rogers Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $57.00 price target (down from $59.00) on shares of Rogers Communications in a report on Thursday, July 25th. TD Securities boosted their price target on Rogers Communications from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded Rogers Communications from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Rogers Communications from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.75.

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.