Vale (NYSE:VALE) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to Buy Rating

Vale (NYSE:VALE) was upgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Saturday.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Vale from $17.50 to $18.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays increased their price target on Vale from $15.50 to $16.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Zacks Research downgraded Vale from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company restated a “cautious” rating and set a $15.50 price target on shares of Vale in a research note on Monday, February 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Vale from $13.80 to $18.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $15.18.

Vale Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE:VALE opened at $15.03 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.83 and a beta of 0.52. Vale has a 52 week low of $8.06 and a 52 week high of $17.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $15.95 and a 200 day moving average of $13.48.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 13th. The basic materials company reported ($0.90) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.52 by ($1.42). The firm had revenue of $11.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.86 billion. Vale had a return on equity of 20.16% and a net margin of 6.12%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Vale will post 1.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vale

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in Vale by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 28,913 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $377,000 after acquiring an additional 632 shares during the period. Chesapeake Capital Corp IL increased its holdings in shares of Vale by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Chesapeake Capital Corp IL now owns 72,358 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $943,000 after purchasing an additional 646 shares during the period. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC raised its stake in shares of Vale by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 38,134 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $497,000 after purchasing an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Vale by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 66,870 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $871,000 after purchasing an additional 853 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Vale by 5.4% during the third quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 17,350 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $188,000 after purchasing an additional 885 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 21.85% of the company’s stock.

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.