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

Shares of Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the fifteen research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $16.00.

Several research firms have weighed in on VALE. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Vale from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $16.50 price objective on shares of Vale in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $16.00 price objective (down from $18.00) on shares of Vale in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Vale from $19.50 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $16.50 target price (down from $19.50) on shares of Vale in a report on Wednesday, July 8th.

Vale Stock Up 3.1%

VALE stock opened at $15.04 on Tuesday. Vale has a fifty-two week low of $10.08 and a fifty-two week high of $17.94. The business’s 50-day moving average is $14.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $15.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.19. The company has a market cap of $68.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.70 and a beta of 0.47.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.46 by ($0.10). Vale had a net margin of 5.11% and a return on equity of 19.87%. The business had revenue of $10.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.47 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that Vale will post 1.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Vale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 13th will be given a $0.3088 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 13th. Vale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 89.80%.

Institutional Trading of Vale

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Vale during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Investors Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych Spolka Akcyjna boosted its stake in shares of Vale by 128.3% in the fourth quarter. Investors Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych Spolka Akcyjna now owns 2,055 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,155 shares during the period. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Vale in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its position in shares of Vale by 15,360.0% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 3,092 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 3,072 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Triumph Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Vale during the third quarter worth about $34,000. 21.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Vale

Vale SA is a Brazilian multinational mining company and one of the world’s largest producers of iron ore and iron ore pellets. In addition to iron ore, the company produces and sells a range of bulk commodities and metals, including nickel, copper, coal, manganese, ferroalloys and cobalt, and it participates in the fertilizer inputs market. Vale also operates extensive logistics assets — including rail, port and maritime logistics — that support its mining and export activities and provide services to third parties in some regions.

Headquartered in Brazil, Vale maintains a global operational footprint with mining, processing and shipping activities across the Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania.