Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) Holdings Lowered by D.A. Davidson & CO.

D.A. Davidson & CO. decreased its position in Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) by 79.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 30,165 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 117,577 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in Vale were worth $268,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in Vale by 6.3% during the third quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 7,951,020 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $92,868,000 after buying an additional 468,432 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vale during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,126,000. Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in shares of Vale by 274.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 162,453 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,915,000 after acquiring an additional 119,061 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP boosted its position in Vale by 723.2% during the third quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 2,035,477 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $23,774,000 after purchasing an additional 1,788,205 shares during the period. Finally, Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. acquired a new position in Vale during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,422,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 21.85% of the company’s stock.

Vale Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of VALE opened at $9.77 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $9.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $9.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.78, a P/E/G ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.91. Vale S.A. has a 12-month low of $8.38 and a 12-month high of $13.68.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.36). The firm had revenue of $10.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.03 billion. Vale had a return on equity of 17.38% and a net margin of 16.15%. As a group, research analysts predict that Vale S.A. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Vale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.3758 dividend. This is a boost from Vale’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a dividend yield of 7.5%. Vale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 88.89%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Vale in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Wolfe Research raised shares of Vale from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Scotiabank lowered their price target on Vale from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Vale from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, UBS Group lowered Vale from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $14.00 to $11.50 in a report on Monday, November 11th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $13.26.

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.