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Rio Tinto PLC, known by the ticker symbol RIO, is a large-cap other industrial minerals and mining company, operating in the materials business sector. This is my first report on Rio Tinto PLC for this Viital portfolio or any of my previous six dividend dog portfolios.

Rio Tinto searches for and extracts a variety of minerals worldwide, with the heaviest concentrations in North America and Australia. 

Iron ore is the dominant commodity, with significantly lesser contributions from aluminium, copper, diamonds, gold, and industrial minerals. 

The 1995 merger of RTZ and CRA, via a dual-listed structure, created the present-day company. The two operate as a single business entity. Shareholders in each company have equivalent economic and voting rights.

The company also owns and operates open pit and underground mines, mills, refineries, smelters, power stations, and research and service facilities. 

Rio Tinto Group was founded in 1873 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

Three key data points gauge any dvidend equity or fund such as Rio Tinto PLC:

(1) Price

(2) Dividends

(3) Returns

Those three basic keys best tell whether any company has made, is making, and will make money. 

RIO Price

Rio's price per share was $79.71 as of yesterday's market close. One year ago its price was $79.40. Therefore, Rio's share price rose $0.31 or about 0.04% in the past year. 

If Rio's stock trades in the range of $60.00 to $96.00 this next year, its recent $79.71 share price might rise by $4.29 to reach $84.00 by April 12, 2023. My $4.29 upside estimate is $0.62 under the median of four analysts annual target prices for brokerage houses tracking RIO. 

RIO Dividends 

Rio Tinto's most recently declared semi-annual dividend of $4.17 is payable April 21st to shareholders on record as of March 10th.  Assuming an Annual payout of $7.92 holds true in the coming year, the payout per share yields 9.94% at yesterday's $79.71 closing price. 

Rio Tinto has paid variable semi-annual payouts since September, 1998. That stretch marks 24 years come September. 

RIO Returns

Adding the $7.92 Rio Tinto annual dividend to the estimated one-year price upside of $4.29 shows a $12.21 potential gross gain, per share, to be reduced by any costs to trade RIO shares.  

At yesterday's $79.71 price per share, a little over $1000 would buy 13 shares.

A $10 broker fee (if charged) would be paid half at purchase and half at sale and might cost us about $0.77 per share.

Subtract that maybe $0.77 brokerage cost from my estimated $12.21 gross gain estimate per share results in a net gain of $11.44 X 13 shares = $148.72 for a 14.8% net gain on a $1,036.23 investment.

So it is that Rio Tinto PLC (RIO): shows a possible 14.85% net gain including a 9.94% forward looking dividend yield. 

Over the next year at this time our $1000 investment in Rio Tinto PLC might generate $99.40 in cash dividends alone. Note that a single share of RIO stock bought at yesterday's price of $79.71 is $19.69 less than the anticipated dividend income from our $1000.00 invested. So, by my dogcatcher ideal, this may be the time to buy Rio Tinto shares. The estimated next-year dividend from $1K invested is currently  $19.69 greater than yesterday's single share price. Consider yourself alerted. It's a sign. Go for the dividend! 

All of the estimates above are speculation based on the past history of Rio Tinto PLC (RIO). Only time and money invested in this stock will determine its market value.