Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) Shares Acquired by Mondrian Investment Partners LTD

Mondrian Investment Partners LTD grew its position in Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) by 13.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,754,809 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,381,475 shares during the quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD owned approximately 0.26% of Vale worth $109,202,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Vale during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its position in Vale by 215.9% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 2,780 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,900 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc grew its position in Vale by 206.4% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,877 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,938 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in Vale during the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its position in Vale by 3,092.0% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 3,192 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 3,092 shares during the last quarter. 21.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vale Stock Performance

Shares of VALE opened at $9.42 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a market cap of $42.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.54, a PEG ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a 50-day moving average of $9.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $9.92. Vale S.A. has a 12-month low of $8.38 and a 12-month high of $13.14.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.36). The business 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 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vale Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.3758 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 7.5%. 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. Vale’s payout ratio is currently 52.08%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Vale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Vale from $16.00 to $15.25 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Scotiabank reduced their price objective 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. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Vale from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut shares of Vale from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $14.50 to $11.30 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.