Signaturefd LLC Sells 5,323 Shares of Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE)

Signaturefd LLC decreased its holdings in Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) by 19.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,216 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 5,323 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Vale were worth $352,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Systematic Alpha Investments LLC bought a new stake in Vale in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Whittier Trust Co. raised its stake in Vale by 423.1% in the fourth quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 1,951 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 1,578 shares during the period. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Vale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake in Vale by 2,502.8% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 2,837 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 2,728 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in Vale by 161.8% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,720 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 2,299 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 21.85% of the company’s stock.

Vale Trading Down 2.5 %

Shares of VALE stock opened at $12.07 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $12.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.74. The company has a market cap of $54.09 billion, a PE ratio of 6.59, a P/E/G ratio of 5.22 and a beta of 0.97. Vale S.A. has a fifty-two week low of $11.52 and a fifty-two week high of $16.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.28.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The basic materials company reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.48). The business had revenue of $13.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.95 billion. Vale had a net margin of 19.10% and a return on equity of 20.00%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.82 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Vale S.A. will post 2.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vale Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 13th were issued a $0.3182 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 9.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 12th. Vale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on VALE. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $19.00 target price on shares of Vale in a research note on Monday, February 12th. StockNews.com began coverage on Vale in a research note on Saturday, March 30th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Vale from $20.50 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 target price (down previously from $20.00) on shares of Vale in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Vale from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $16.67.

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.