AQR Capital Management LLC Has $43.18 Million Stock Position in Vale S.A. $VALE

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Vale S.A. by 26.1%, owning approximately 4.33 million shares valued at $43.18 million after acquiring an additional 896,302 shares.
• The stock has recently seen price objective revisions, with Barclays raising its target to $13.00 while JPMorgan lowered its target to $13.50.
• Vale announced a semi-annual dividend of $0.3417 per share with a dividend yield of 740.0%, although the payout ratio is currently at 58.54%.

AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE - Free Report) by 26.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,326,364 shares of the basic materials company's stock after buying an additional 896,302 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Vale worth $43,177,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in Vale in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $228,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Vale by 193.0% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,119 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 2,713 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Vale by 20.4% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,954 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $159,000 after acquiring an additional 2,707 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Vale by 38.5% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 22,522 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $225,000 after acquiring an additional 6,261 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Vale by 44.4% in the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 20,847 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $208,000 after purchasing an additional 6,412 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 21.85% of the company's stock.

Vale Stock Performance

Shares of VALE stock traded up $0.16 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $10.51. The stock had a trading volume of 26,578,541 shares, compared to its average volume of 36,142,539. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Vale S.A. has a twelve month low of $8.06 and a twelve month high of $12.05. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $10.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $9.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.68 billion, a PE ratio of 8.54 and a beta of 0.79.

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

Vale Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.3417 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 740.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 13th. Vale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Vale from $15.00 to $13.50 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 4th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $10.00 price target (up previously from $9.00) on shares of Vale in a report on Monday, August 4th. Clarkson Capital began coverage on shares of Vale in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $12.00 price objective for the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Vale from $12.75 to $13.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of Vale from $13.00 to $12.50 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $11.71.

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.