Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Vale S.A. has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from twelve analysts, with an average 12-month price target of $11.93.
• Analysts at Scotiabank upgraded Vale's rating to "sector outperform" with a target price of $14.00, while Barclays increased their target from $13.50 to $13.70.
• Vale's shares opened at $10.69, following a recent quarterly earnings report that showed a net margin of 14.23%, although revenue fell short of expectations.

Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the twelve analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation and seven have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $11.93.

Several analysts have issued reports on VALE shares. Scotiabank upgraded Vale from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and set a $14.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, September 18th. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $10.00 price target (up previously from $9.00) on shares of Vale in a research report on Monday, August 4th. 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. Clarkson Capital started coverage on Vale in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. They set a "buy" rating and a $12.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Vale from $13.50 to $13.70 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 18th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new stake in shares of Vale in the first quarter worth $30,000. CENTRAL TRUST Co bought a new stake in shares of Vale during the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vale by 98.4% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,075 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 2,021 shares in the last quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Vale in the first quarter worth approximately $41,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Vale by 193.0% in the first 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 in the last quarter. 21.85% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vale Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of NYSE:VALE opened at $10.69 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $48.50 billion, a PE ratio of 8.69 and a beta of 0.79. Vale has a 1 year low of $8.06 and a 1 year high of $12.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $10.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $9.80.

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

Vale Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th were given a $0.3417 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 740.0%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 13th. Vale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.35%.

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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