The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Trims Stock Position in Vale S.A. $VALE

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lessened its stake in shares of Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) by 85.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 66,831 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 400,878 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Vale were worth $1,005,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Investors Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych Spolka Akcyjna raised its position in Vale by 128.3% during the 4th quarter. Investors Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych Spolka Akcyjna now owns 2,055 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,155 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vale during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Triumph Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Vale in the third quarter valued at about $34,000. EFG International AG purchased a new stake in Vale in the fourth quarter worth about $52,000. Finally, Ramsey Quantitative Systems bought a new position in Vale during the 2nd quarter worth about $56,000. Institutional investors own 21.85% of the company’s stock.

Vale Stock Down 0.2%

Vale stock opened at $15.28 on Friday. Vale S.A. has a 1-year low of $10.33 and a 1-year high of $17.94. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $14.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $15.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $69.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.18 and a beta of 0.49.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $10.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.47 billion. Vale had a net margin of 5.11% and a return on equity of 19.87%. Equities research analysts forecast that Vale S.A. will post 1.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.3088 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 13th. Vale’s dividend payout ratio is 89.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VALE has been the subject of several research reports. Zacks Research cut shares of Vale from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Vale from $19.50 to $21.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $16.00 price target (down from $18.00) on shares of Vale in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Vale from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Freedom Broker downgraded Vale from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $16.33.

Vale Company Profile

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.