Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) Stake Cut by Envestnet Asset Management Inc.

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE - Free Report) by 17.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 744,106 shares of the basic materials company's stock after selling 157,127 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Vale were worth $6,600,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its stake in Vale by 215.9% in the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 2,780 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,900 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in Vale by 206.4% during the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,877 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,938 shares during the period. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in Vale by 3,092.0% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 3,192 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 3,092 shares during the period. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Vale during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in Vale by 68.3% in the fourth quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 4,000 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 1,623 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 21.85% of the company's stock.

Vale Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of Vale stock traded down $0.21 on Friday, reaching $9.55. 10,121,703 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 30,498,818. Vale S.A. has a fifty-two week low of $8.06 and a fifty-two week high of $13.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $9.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $9.65.

Vale (NYSE:VALE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The basic materials company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.36). Vale had a return on equity of 17.38% and a net margin of 16.15%. The company had revenue of $10.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.03 billion. On average, analysts expect that Vale S.A. will post 1.85 EPS for the current year.

Vale Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VALE has been the subject of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Vale from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. Wolfe Research upgraded Vale from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Scotiabank lowered their target price on Vale from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com started coverage on Vale in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. They set a "hold" rating for the company. Finally, Bank of America raised Vale from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the company from $11.00 to $11.50 in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Vale presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $12.44.

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.