Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Reduces Holdings in Vale S.A. $VALE

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lowered its position in shares of Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) by 9.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 53,014 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 5,790 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Vale were worth $515,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in VALE. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new position in Vale during the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vale by 98.4% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,075 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 2,021 shares during the period. Thompson Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vale during the second quarter worth approximately $46,000. Westend Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vale during the second quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Capital Analysts LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vale during the first quarter worth approximately $51,000. 21.85% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Vale Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:VALE opened at $12.31 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $55.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.00 and a beta of 0.82. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $11.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $10.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. Vale S.A. has a fifty-two week low of $8.06 and a fifty-two week high of $12.60.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $10.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.39 billion. Vale had a net margin of 14.23% and a return on equity of 18.14%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Vale S.A. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VALE has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Vale from $13.50 to $14.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $15.00 target price on shares of Vale and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Vale from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Morgan Stanley set a $11.50 price target on Vale in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, HSBC upped their price objective on Vale from $12.25 to $13.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $12.61.

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.