1,374,389 Shares in Vale S.A. $VALE Bought by Larch Capital Partners LLC

Larch Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,374,389 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,229,000. Vale comprises approximately 2.5% of Larch Capital Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest position.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Vale by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 28,913 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $377,000 after acquiring an additional 632 shares during the period. Chesapeake Capital Corp IL grew its holdings in Vale by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Chesapeake Capital Corp IL now owns 72,358 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $943,000 after purchasing an additional 646 shares during the period. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC increased its stake in Vale by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 38,134 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $497,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its stake in Vale by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 66,870 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $871,000 after purchasing an additional 853 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Vale by 5.4% in the third quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 17,350 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $188,000 after purchasing an additional 885 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 21.85% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VALE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Vale in a research report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $18.00 target price on shares of Vale in a research note on Friday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Vale from $19.50 to $21.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Vale from $15.50 to $16.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Vale in a report on Friday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Vale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $16.85.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Sobrinho Sami Arap acquired 12,990 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was bought at an average price of $16.11 per share, with a total value of $209,268.90. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 12,990 shares in the company, valued at approximately $209,268.90. The trade was a ? increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Parenti Grazielle Tallia purchased 10,464 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $16.11 per share, for a total transaction of $168,575.04. Following the transaction, the insider owned 10,464 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $168,575.04. The trade was a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure.

Vale Stock Performance

Shares of VALE stock opened at $15.44 on Friday. Vale S.A. has a 12 month low of $8.97 and a 12 month high of $17.94. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $16.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.49. The firm has a market cap of $70.06 billion, a PE ratio of 23.04 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The basic materials company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $9.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.53 billion. Vale had a return on equity of 21.10% and a net margin of 7.21%. Equities research analysts expect that Vale S.A. will post 2.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vale Profile

Vale SA is a Brazilian multinational mining company and one of the world’s largest producers of iron ore and iron ore pellets. In addition to iron ore, the company produces and sells a range of bulk commodities and metals, including nickel, copper, coal, manganese, ferroalloys and cobalt, and it participates in the fertilizer inputs market. Vale also operates extensive logistics assets — including rail, port and maritime logistics — that support its mining and export activities and provide services to third parties in some regions.

Headquartered in Brazil, Vale maintains a global operational footprint with mining, processing and shipping activities across the Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania.