Acquisition will lift 2022 earnings

Article Excerpt

T. ROWE PRICE GROUP INC. $157 is a buy. The seller of mutual funds (Nasdaq symbol TROW; High-Growth Dividend Payer Portfolio, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 226.9 million; Market cap: $35.6 billion; Dividend yield: 2.8%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Above Average; www.troweprice.com) last raised its quarterly dividend by 20.0% in March 2021. The new annual rate of $4.32 a share yields 2.8%. As well, in July 2021, it paid a special cash dividend of $3.00 a share. The company has now completed its acquisition of Oak Hill Advisors. Based in New York City, Oak Hill arranges financing for distressed businesses that are unable to secure loans from traditional banks and lenders. It had $53 billion in capital under management as of July 31, 2021. T. Rowe Price made an upfront payment of $3.3 billion, consisting of 74% cash and 26% in its shares. Depending on Oak Hill’s future performance, it may have to pay an additional $900 million by 2025. That would raise the total acquisition costs to…