Dividend hike despite profit drop

Article Excerpt

T. ROWE PRICE GROUP INC. $112 is a buy. The mutual fund seller’s (Nasdaq symbol TROW; Aggressive Growth and Income Portfolios, Finance sector; Shares outstanding: 224.4 million; Market cap: $25.1 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 4.2; Dividend yield: 4.4%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.troweprice.com) assets under management declined 24.5% in 2022. As a result, its revenue in the fourth quarter fell 22.3%, to $1.52 billion from $1.96 billion a year earlier. Excluding one-time items, earnings per-share declined 45.1%, to $1.74 from $3.17. However, the company recently acquired Oak Hill Advisors for $3.4 billion. That firm arranges financing for distressed businesses unable to secure loans from traditional lenders; it also helps diversify T. Rowe’s operations. Investor can expect T. Rowe Price to raise their quarterly dividend by 1.7% with the March 2023 payment. The new annual rate of $4.88 a share yields a high 4.4%. T. Rowe Price is a buy. buy…