Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, nine have assigned a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $13.7308.

Several equities analysts have weighed in on VALE shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Vale from $13.80 to $18.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $15.00 price objective on shares of Vale and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Vale from $14.50 to $15.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised shares of Vale from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $11.00 to $14.20 in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Vale from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th.

Vale Stock Down 4.0%

VALE opened at $16.36 on Friday. Vale has a 52 week low of $8.06 and a 52 week high of $17.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.24. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $12.02.

Vale Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a special dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th were issued a dividend of $0.2331 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 12th. Vale’s dividend payout ratio is 67.69%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vale

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. May Hill Capital LLC raised its holdings in Vale by 137.7% in the fourth quarter. May Hill Capital LLC now owns 30,424 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $396,000 after acquiring an additional 17,625 shares in the last quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased its position in shares of Vale by 304.2% in the 4th quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 40,421 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $525,000 after purchasing an additional 30,421 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Vale by 115.2% in the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 33,546 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $437,000 after purchasing an additional 17,955 shares in the last quarter. TLS Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vale by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. TLS Advisors LLC now owns 99,393 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,295,000 after purchasing an additional 3,070 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trek Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vale during the 4th quarter worth $6,308,000. 21.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Vale

Vale SA is a Brazilian multinational mining company and one of the world’s largest producers of iron ore and iron ore pellets. In addition to iron ore, the company produces and sells a range of bulk commodities and metals, including nickel, copper, coal, manganese, ferroalloys and cobalt, and it participates in the fertilizer inputs market. Vale also operates extensive logistics assets — including rail, port and maritime logistics — that support its mining and export activities and provide services to third parties in some regions.

Headquartered in Brazil, Vale maintains a global operational footprint with mining, processing and shipping activities across the Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania.