Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky Acquires 1,392,500 Shares of Vale S.A. $VALE

Key Points

• Teachers Retirement System of the State of Kentucky increased its stake in Vale by 52.0%, acquiring 1,392,500 shares in Q4 to hold 4,072,400 shares worth about $53.06 million.
• Several brokerages have raised targets and ratings (e.g., Bank of America to Buy with a $19 target), and MarketBeat shows an average rating of “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $16.02.
• Vale missed Q4 EPS expectations, reporting ($0.90) vs. a $0.52 consensus while posting $11.06 billion in revenue, and the stock trades near $17.17 with a one‑year range of $8.97–$17.94.

Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its holdings in shares of Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE - Free Report) by 52.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,072,400 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,392,500 shares during the quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky's holdings in Vale were worth $53,064,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in VALE. Sava Infond d.o.o. raised its position in Vale by 39.5% in the 4th quarter. Sava Infond d.o.o. now owns 60,000 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $782,000 after purchasing an additional 17,000 shares during the period. Matthews International Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Vale during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,726,000. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vale in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. OLD National Bancorp IN increased its holdings in shares of Vale by 23.4% in the fourth quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 17,254 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $225,000 after buying an additional 3,268 shares during the period. Finally, Caprock Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vale by 22.1% in the 4th quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 270,326 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $3,584,000 after acquiring an additional 48,856 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 21.85% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on VALE. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Vale from $18.00 to $18.50 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 10th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Vale from $15.50 to $16.50 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Vale from $15.50 to $17.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Vale from $13.80 to $18.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Bank of America raised shares of Vale from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $18.00 to $19.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $16.02.

Vale Stock Up 0.2%

NYSE VALE opened at $17.17 on Friday. Vale S.A. has a 1 year low of $8.97 and a 1 year high of $17.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.95 billion, a PE ratio of 30.67 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.78. The business's 50-day moving average is $16.16 and its 200 day moving average is $14.34.

Vale (NYSE:VALE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 13th. The basic materials company reported ($0.90) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.52 by ($1.42). Vale had a net margin of 6.12% and a return on equity of 20.16%. The business had revenue of $11.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.86 billion. Sell-side analysts forecast that Vale S.A. will post 2.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Sobrinho Sami Arap purchased 12,990 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were acquired at an average price of $16.11 per share, for a total transaction of $209,268.90. Following the completion of the acquisition, the vice president directly owned 12,990 shares in the company, valued at approximately $209,268.90. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Parenti Grazielle Tallia acquired 10,464 shares of Vale stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $16.11 per share, for a total transaction of $168,575.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 10,464 shares in the company, valued at approximately $168,575.04. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing.

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.

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