QRG Capital Management Inc. Purchases 2,694 Shares of Vale S.A. $VALE

QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 77,100 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,694 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Vale were worth $749,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Vale by 787.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 20,499 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $2,054,000 after acquiring an additional 18,190 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in Vale by 25.9% in the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 166,125 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,658,000 after purchasing an additional 34,185 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Vale by 44.4% during the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 20,847 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $208,000 after purchasing an additional 6,412 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC bought a new position in Vale during the 1st quarter worth about $128,000. Finally, Focus Financial Network Inc. raised its stake in shares of Vale by 27.9% in the 1st quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 20,810 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $208,000 after purchasing an additional 4,540 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 21.85% of the company’s stock.

Vale Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE VALE opened at $11.03 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $10.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $9.87. Vale S.A. has a 52 week low of $8.06 and a 52 week high of $11.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.07 billion, a PE ratio of 8.97 and a beta of 0.80.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The basic materials company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.16. Vale had a return on equity of 18.14% and a net margin of 14.23%.The firm had revenue of $8.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.54 billion. Analysts predict that Vale S.A. will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Vale Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 13th were given a dividend of $0.3417 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a yield of 740.0%. Vale’s dividend payout ratio is 59.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on VALE. Morgan Stanley set a $11.50 price objective on Vale in a research report on Wednesday. Scotiabank raised Vale from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and set a $14.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Vale from $15.00 to $13.50 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Clarkson Capital began coverage on Vale in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $12.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Vale in a research report on Wednesday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $11.95.

Vale 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.