Vale Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:VALE)

Vale S.A. (NYSE:VALE) saw unusually large options trading on Thursday. Investors bought 96,059 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 68% compared to the average daily volume of 57,318 call options.

Vale Trading Down 2.5 %

Shares of VALE opened at $12.07 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $54.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.59, a P/E/G ratio of 5.29 and a beta of 0.97. Vale has a one year low of $11.52 and a one year high of $16.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.28. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $12.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $13.74.

Vale (NYSE:VALE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The basic materials company reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.04 by ($0.48). The business had revenue of $13.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.95 billion. Vale had a net margin of 19.10% and a return on equity of 20.00%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.82 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Vale will post 2.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Vale Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 13th were issued a $0.3182 dividend. This represents a yield of 9.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 12th. Vale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.48%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VALE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on Vale from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $19.00 price target on shares of Vale in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Barclays upped their price target on Vale from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 price target (down from $20.00) on shares of Vale in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Vale from $20.50 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $16.67.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in Vale in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its holdings in Vale by 423.1% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 1,951 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 1,578 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. bought a new position in Vale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new position in Vale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc bought a new position in Vale during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Hedge funds and other 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.