Vale Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:VALE)

Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Investors bought 96,059 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 68% compared to the average daily volume of 57,318 call options.

Vale Price Performance

Shares of Vale stock opened at $12.28 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $55.05 billion, a PE ratio of 6.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.29 and a beta of 0.97. Vale has a 12-month low of $11.52 and a 12-month high of $16.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $12.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $13.74.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The basic materials company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.48). Vale had a return on equity of 20.00% and a net margin of 19.10%. The firm had revenue of $13.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.95 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.82 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Vale will post 2.25 EPS for the current year.

Vale Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 13th were given a $0.3182 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 9.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 12th. Vale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.48%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vale

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in VALE. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD raised its holdings in Vale by 1.7% in the third quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD now owns 9,254,277 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $124,007,000 after purchasing an additional 150,918 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Vale by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 10,097 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $160,000 after purchasing an additional 932 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Vale by 49,161.5% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,440,413 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $38,705,000 after purchasing an additional 2,435,459 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in Vale by 4.5% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 6,724,828 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $90,112,000 after purchasing an additional 289,495 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Seven Eight Capital LP bought a new position in Vale in the third quarter worth $290,000. 21.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VALE has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Vale from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. 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 research report on Tuesday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Vale from $20.50 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $19.00 price objective on shares of Vale in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on shares of Vale from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.