Natixis Advisors L.P. Buys 102,875 Shares of Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE)

Natixis Advisors L.P. raised its stake in Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) by 16.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 717,773 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 102,875 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P.’s holdings in Vale were worth $11,383,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Systematic Alpha Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Vale in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of 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 last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Vale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake in Vale by 2,502.8% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 2,837 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 2,728 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 21.85% of the company’s stock.

Vale Stock Performance

VALE opened at $12.70 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $56.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.44 and a beta of 0.97. 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 S.A. has a 52-week low of $11.52 and a 52-week high of $16.08. The business’s fifty day moving average is $12.40 and its 200-day moving average is $13.72.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last issued its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $13.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.95 billion. Vale had a return on equity of 19.59% and a net margin of 18.72%. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.82 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Vale S.A. will post 2.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vale Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 13th were paid a $0.3182 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 12th. This represents a dividend yield of 9.7%. Vale’s payout ratio is 65.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on VALE shares. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Vale in a research report on Saturday, March 30th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $19.00 target price on shares of Vale in a report on Monday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Vale from $20.50 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 12th. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 price objective (down previously from $20.00) on shares of Vale in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, UBS Group upgraded Vale from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $13.00 to $15.00 in a research note on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Vale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $16.67.

Vale Company 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.