Vale (NYSE:VALE) Rating Lowered to "Strong Sell" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research has downgraded Vale's rating from "hold" to "strong sell", indicating a significant decline in confidence among analysts.
• The current average rating for Vale is "Hold," with six analysts rating it as "Buy" and one assigning a "Sell" rating.
• Despite the downgrade, Vale's stock has a market cap of $47.68 billion with a current price around $10.51 and a 12-month high of $12.05.

Vale (NYSE:VALE - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

VALE has been the subject of a number of other reports. Clarkson Capital assumed coverage on Vale in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $12.00 target price for the company. Barclays upped their target price on Vale from $12.75 to $13.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. CICC Research assumed coverage on Vale in a research report on Monday, May 12th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $11.30 target price for the company. Scotiabank cut their target price on Vale from $13.00 to $12.50 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Finally, UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $10.00 target price (up from $9.00) on shares of Vale in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $11.71.

Vale Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VALE opened at $10.51 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $10.05 and a 200-day simple moving average of $9.70. The company has a market cap of $47.68 billion, a PE ratio of 8.54 and a beta of 0.79. Vale has a 12-month low of $8.06 and a 12-month high of $12.05.

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

Institutional Trading of Vale

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new stake in Vale during the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. CENTRAL TRUST Co acquired a new stake in Vale during the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Vale by 98.4% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,075 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 2,021 shares during the period. J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new stake in Vale during the 1st quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, 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 valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 2,713 shares during the period. 21.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vale Company 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.

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