Anthracite Investment Company Inc. Makes New Investment in Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE)

Anthracite Investment Company Inc. purchased a new stake in Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 430,000 shares of the basic materials company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,814,000. Vale accounts for 1.3% of Anthracite Investment Company Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest holding.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC bought a new position in Vale in the 3rd quarter worth $1,126,000. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in shares of Vale by 274.4% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 162,453 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,915,000 after purchasing an additional 119,061 shares during the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP lifted its position in shares of Vale by 723.2% during the 3rd quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 2,035,477 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $23,774,000 after purchasing an additional 1,788,205 shares during the last quarter. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new stake in Vale during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,422,000. Finally, NFJ Investment Group LLC increased its position in Vale by 17.6% in the 3rd quarter. NFJ Investment Group LLC now owns 469,036 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $5,478,000 after buying an additional 70,278 shares during the period. 21.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Vale Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of VALE opened at $10.07 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $9.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $9.89. 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 market cap of $45.71 billion, a PE ratio of 6.99, a PEG ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 0.85. Vale S.A. has a 1 year low of $8.38 and a 1 year high of $13.14.

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

Vale Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $0.3758 per share. This is a positive change from Vale’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.30. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a dividend yield of 7.5%. Vale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.08%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on VALE shares. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Vale in a research note on Tuesday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of Vale from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $14.50 to $11.30 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Vale from $16.00 to $15.25 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Wolfe Research upgraded Vale from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Vale from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $13.26.

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.