Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) Stake Decreased by Mondrian Investment Partners LTD

Key Points

• Mondrian Investment Partners LTD reduced its stake in Vale S.A. by 1.6% in Q1, now holding approximately 11.57 million shares, which constitutes 2.0% of their total investments.
• Several hedge funds increased their holdings in Vale during the same period, with notable increases from Todd Asset Management (up 2.9%) and Longfellow Investment Management (up 47.8%).
• Analysts' ratings for Vale show a mix, with six holding it as "hold" and five as "buy", while the average price target is set at $11.84.

Mondrian Investment Partners LTD decreased its stake in Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE - Free Report) by 1.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,569,197 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 185,612 shares during the period. Vale makes up 2.0% of Mondrian Investment Partners LTD's portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD owned 0.25% of Vale worth $115,461,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of VALE. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Vale by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 33,995,398 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $301,541,000 after acquiring an additional 5,775,590 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vale by 49.3% in the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 18,238,313 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $161,773,000 after acquiring an additional 6,023,144 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Vale by 38.0% in the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 15,932,405 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $159,005,000 after acquiring an additional 4,389,959 shares in the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Vale by 15.6% in the first 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 acquiring an additional 1,557,799 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Vale by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,865,596 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $69,767,000 after acquiring an additional 313,431 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 21.85% of the company's stock.

Vale Stock Performance

VALE stock traded down $0.18 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $9.91. The company had a trading volume of 23,321,487 shares, compared to its average volume of 48,363,716. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $9.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.62. Vale S.A. has a fifty-two week low of $8.06 and a fifty-two week high of $12.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.96 billion, a PE ratio of 8.05 and a beta of 0.74.

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

Vale Cuts Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on VALE shares. CICC Research started coverage on Vale in a research note on Monday, May 12th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $11.30 price target on the stock. Scotiabank cut their price target on Vale from $13.00 to $12.50 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $11.00 price objective (down from $12.00) on shares of Vale in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen began coverage on Vale in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Finally, 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. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target 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.