Vale (NYSE:VALE) Downgraded by UBS Group to “Neutral”

Vale (NYSE:VALE) was downgraded by equities researchers at UBS Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $11.50 target price on the basic materials company’s stock, down from their previous target price of $14.00. UBS Group’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 15.46% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on VALE. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Vale from $16.00 to $15.50 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 19th. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Vale in a research note on Friday, October 18th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Vale from $17.00 to $16.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Wolfe Research lowered shares of Vale from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Vale from $16.50 to $15.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $15.83.

Vale Price Performance

Vale stock opened at $9.96 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.65 billion, a PE ratio of 4.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.29 and a beta of 0.94. Vale has a 52 week low of $9.66 and a 52 week high of $16.08. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $10.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The basic materials company reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.15. Vale had a net margin of 22.59% and a return on equity of 21.07%. The company had revenue of $9.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.61 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.66 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Vale will post 2.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vale

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda increased its holdings in shares of Vale by 60.6% during the 2nd quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda now owns 21,969,937 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $245,404,000 after buying an additional 8,288,112 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in Vale by 395.3% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 7,152,069 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $79,889,000 after acquiring an additional 5,707,969 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in Vale by 110.9% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 5,459,485 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $60,983,000 after acquiring an additional 2,871,094 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of Vale by 27.8% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 11,853,914 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $132,408,000 after purchasing an additional 2,578,900 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Vale in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,038,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 21.85% of the company’s stock.

About Vale

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.