Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the ten ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $13.26.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on VALE shares. Wolfe Research raised shares of Vale from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Vale from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Vale from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $14.50 to $11.30 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of Vale from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Vale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th.

Vale Trading Up 4.3 %

Shares of NYSE VALE opened at $9.83 on Tuesday. Vale has a 1 year low of $8.38 and a 1 year high of $13.14. The stock has a market cap of $44.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.85. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $9.32 and a 200 day moving average of $9.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.58.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.36). Vale had a net margin of 16.15% and a return on equity of 17.38%. The business had revenue of $10.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.03 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Vale will post 1.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vale Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.3758 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This is a positive change from Vale’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.30. This represents a dividend yield of 7.5%. Vale’s payout ratio is currently 52.08%.

Institutional Trading of Vale

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its position in Vale by 215.9% during the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 2,780 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 1,900 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc grew its position in Vale by 206.4% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,877 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 1,938 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Vale during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its position in Vale by 3,092.0% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 3,192 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 3,092 shares during the period. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Vale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 21.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vale Company Profile

Vale SA, together with its subsidiaries, produces and sells iron ore and iron ore pellets for use as raw materials in steelmaking in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through Iron Solutions and Energy Transition Materials segments. The Iron Solutions segment produces and extracts iron ore and pellets, manganese, and other ferrous products; and provides related logistic services.