Traders Purchase High Volume of Vale Call Options (NYSE:VALE)

Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders purchased 77,726 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 92% compared to the typical volume of 40,489 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on VALE shares. Clarkson Capital started coverage on shares of Vale in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $12.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $11.50 price objective on shares of Vale in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Vale from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock a “cautious” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Barclays upped their target price on Vale from $13.80 to $14.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Vale in a research report on Tuesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Vale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $12.61.

Vale Stock Performance

NYSE:VALE opened at $12.52 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $56.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.17 and a beta of 0.82. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $11.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $10.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Vale has a 1 year low of $8.06 and a 1 year high of $12.60.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.14. Vale had a return on equity of 18.14% and a net margin of 14.23%.The company had revenue of $10.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.39 billion. On average, analysts expect that Vale will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vale

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Vale by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 17,350 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $188,000 after buying an additional 885 shares in the last quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in Vale by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 29,114 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $316,000 after acquiring an additional 982 shares during the period. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Vale by 60.0% during the 3rd quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,748 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,030 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of Vale by 8.5% during the second quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 13,935 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $135,000 after acquiring an additional 1,087 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fullcircle Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vale by 8.7% in the third quarter. Fullcircle Wealth LLC now owns 13,800 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $165,000 after acquiring an additional 1,100 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 21.85% of the company’s stock.

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.