Lazard Asset Management LLC Has $161.77 Million Stock Position in Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE)

Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE - Free Report) by 49.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,238,313 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,023,144 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.40% of Vale worth $161,773,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its stake in Vale by 215.9% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 2,780 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,900 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in shares of Vale by 206.4% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,877 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 1,938 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its position in Vale by 3,092.0% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 3,192 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 3,092 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Vale in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Vale by 68.3% in the 4th quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 4,000 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,623 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 21.85% of the company's stock.

Vale Stock Up 0.2%

VALE stock traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $9.81. The company's stock had a trading volume of 26,671,497 shares, compared to its average volume of 30,709,516. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $9.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $9.52. Vale S.A. has a 12 month low of $8.06 and a 12 month high of $13.14. The company has a market capitalization of $44.53 billion, a PE ratio of 6.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Vale (NYSE:VALE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The basic materials company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.37 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $8.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.39 billion. Vale had a net margin of 16.15% and a return on equity of 17.38%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Vale S.A. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Vale Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $0.3758 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 7.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This is an increase from Vale's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.30. Vale's dividend payout ratio is 54.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. CICC Research assumed coverage on Vale in a research note on Monday. They set an "outperform" rating and a $11.30 target price on the stock. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Vale from $10.50 to $9.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Vale from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $11.00 to $11.50 in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $11.00 price target (down from $12.00) on shares of Vale in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Vale in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $12.04.

Vale Profile

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.