Truist Financial Corp Purchases 5,189 Shares of Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE)

Truist Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) by 18.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,704 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after buying an additional 5,189 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp’s holdings in Vale were worth $299,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Vale Stock Performance

NYSE VALE opened at $9.72 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $44.10 billion, a PE ratio of 6.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.91. Vale S.A. has a 52-week low of $8.38 and a 52-week high of $13.68. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $9.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $9.96.

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

Vale Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Vale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of Vale from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Scotiabank reduced their target price on shares of Vale from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Vale from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Vale from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $14.50 to $11.30 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $13.26.

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.