Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the ten analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $16.85.

VALE has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group decreased their price target on Vale from $15.00 to $14.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on Vale from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. BNP Paribas raised Vale from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Barclays upped their price target on Vale from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on Vale in a research note on Saturday, March 30th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vale

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Richard P Slaughter Associates Inc increased its holdings in Vale by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Richard P Slaughter Associates Inc now owns 173,316 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,936,000 after purchasing an additional 3,515 shares during the period. Aprio Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Vale by 73.3% during the 2nd quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 29,468 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $329,000 after purchasing an additional 12,460 shares during the period. Cullinan Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Vale during the 2nd quarter worth about $460,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Vale during the 2nd quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Keynote Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Vale during the 1st quarter worth about $126,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 21.85% of the company’s stock.

Vale Stock Performance

NYSE VALE opened at $11.46 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $11.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.12. Vale has a fifty-two week low of $10.99 and a fifty-two week high of $16.08.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The basic materials company reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $8.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.35 billion. Vale had a return on equity of 19.59% and a net margin of 18.72%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Vale will post 2.17 earnings per share for the current year.

About Vale

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.