Bank of America Upgrades Vale (NYSE:VALE) to Buy

Vale (NYSE:VALE) was upgraded by research analysts at Bank of America from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage presently has a $11.50 price target on the basic materials company’s stock, up from their previous price target of $11.00. Bank of America‘s price target suggests a potential upside of 24.95% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on VALE. Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of Vale from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Vale from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley cut Vale from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $14.50 to $11.30 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Wolfe Research raised Vale from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on Vale in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $12.65.

Vale Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VALE opened at $9.20 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.91. The company has a market capitalization of $41.78 billion, a PE ratio of 6.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.73. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $9.63 and a 200-day moving average of $9.78. Vale has a one year low of $8.06 and a one year high of $13.14.

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

Institutional Trading of Vale

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its position in shares of Vale by 215.9% in the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 2,780 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,900 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in shares of Vale by 206.4% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,877 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,938 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its holdings in Vale by 3,092.0% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 3,192 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 3,092 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Vale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Vale by 68.3% during the fourth quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 4,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,623 shares during the last quarter. 21.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.