Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Decreases Stock Position in Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans cut its stake in shares of Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) by 3.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 501,270 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 20,086 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Vale were worth $4,446,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of VALE. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Vale during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,126,000. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in Vale by 274.4% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 162,453 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $1,915,000 after buying an additional 119,061 shares during the period. Bridgewater Associates LP grew its holdings in Vale by 723.2% in the 3rd quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 2,035,477 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $23,774,000 after acquiring an additional 1,788,205 shares during the last quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Vale in the third quarter valued at about $1,422,000. Finally, NFJ Investment Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Vale by 17.6% during the third quarter. NFJ Investment Group LLC now owns 469,036 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $5,478,000 after acquiring an additional 70,278 shares during the last quarter. 21.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Vale Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE VALE opened at $9.94 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $45.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.58. Vale S.A. has a 1 year low of $8.38 and a 1 year high of $13.14. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $9.51 and a 200 day moving average of $9.89.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.36). The company had revenue of $10.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.03 billion. Vale had a return on equity of 17.38% and a net margin of 16.15%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Vale S.A. will post 1.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vale Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a $0.3758 dividend. This represents a yield of 7.5%. This is an increase from Vale’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. Vale’s payout ratio is 52.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on VALE shares. Scotiabank reduced their price target on Vale from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley cut Vale from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $14.50 to $11.30 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays dropped their price target on Vale from $16.00 to $15.25 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Vale from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Wolfe Research raised shares of Vale from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Vale has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $13.26.

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.