GQG Partners LLC Buys Shares of 37,252,302 Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE)

Key Points

• GQG Partners LLC has acquired 37,252,302 shares of Vale S.A. in the first quarter, bringing its total stake to approximately 0.82% of the company valued at around $371.8 million.
• Several institutional investors have increased their positions in Vale, with Price T Rowe Associates' stake growing by 20.5% and Lazard Asset Management's holdings increasing by 49.3% during the last quarter.
• Vale recently reported earnings of $0.50 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, while also announcing a semi-annual dividend of $0.3417 per share, reflecting a significant yield.

GQG Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 37,252,302 shares of the basic materials company's stock, valued at approximately $371,778,000. GQG Partners LLC owned about 0.82% of Vale as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in shares of Vale by 20.5% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 33,995,398 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $301,541,000 after buying an additional 5,775,590 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Vale by 49.3% during the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 18,238,313 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $161,773,000 after purchasing an additional 6,023,144 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Vale by 38.0% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 15,932,405 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $159,005,000 after purchasing an additional 4,389,959 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its holdings in Vale by 15.6% during the 1st quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 11,523,471 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $115,004,000 after purchasing an additional 1,557,799 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Vale by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,865,596 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $69,767,000 after purchasing an additional 313,431 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 21.85% of the company's stock.

Vale Trading Up 2.1%

Shares of NYSE:VALE opened at $10.42 on Wednesday. Vale S.A. has a 52-week low of $8.06 and a 52-week high of $12.05. The company has a market capitalization of $47.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.47 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $9.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $9.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.22.

Vale (NYSE:VALE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.16. Vale had a net margin of 14.23% and a return on equity of 18.14%. The business had revenue of $8.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.54 billion. Sell-side analysts forecast that Vale S.A. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Vale Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be given a dividend of $0.3417 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a yield of 740.0%. Vale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.54%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. CICC Research assumed coverage on Vale in a report on Monday, May 12th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $11.30 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen assumed coverage on Vale in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. They set a "hold" rating for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $11.00 target price (down previously from $12.00) on shares of Vale in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Barclays increased their target price on Vale from $12.75 to $13.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $10.00 price objective (up from $9.00) on shares of Vale in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vale currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $11.84.

About Vale

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.

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