Brokerages Set Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) Price Target at $13.38

Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, nine have assigned a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $13.7308.

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on VALE. Morgan Stanley set a $11.50 price target on shares of Vale in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Barclays upped their price target on Vale from $14.50 to $15.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Vale from $13.80 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Vale to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Vale from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 27th.

Vale Trading Up 5.4%

NYSE:VALE opened at $17.01 on Friday. Vale has a 52 week low of $8.06 and a 52 week high of $17.34. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $13.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $11.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.24.

Vale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a special dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th were given a dividend of $0.2331 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 12th. Vale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.69%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vale

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in VALE. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Vale in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Vale by 60.0% in the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,748 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 1,030 shares during the period. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its holdings in Vale by 15,360.0% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 3,092 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 3,072 shares during the period. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in Vale during the 3rd quarter worth $34,000. Finally, CENTRAL TRUST Co purchased a new stake in Vale during the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. 21.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Vale

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.