Wall Street Zen Upgrades Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) to Buy

Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

AFYA has been the topic of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Afya from $21.50 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Weiss Ratings cut Afya from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Afya from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Finally, Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Afya in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $18.00.

Afya Price Performance

AFYA stock opened at $14.68 on Friday. Afya has a twelve month low of $13.00 and a twelve month high of $16.50. The company has a market cap of $1.38 billion, a PE ratio of 8.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.35. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $14.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $14.34. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 14th. The company reported $0.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.03. Afya had a return on equity of 17.58% and a net margin of 20.55%.The firm had revenue of $187.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $189.62 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Afya will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Afya

In other Afya news, VP Lélio de Souza, Jr. sold 41,541 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total value of $623,115.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 36,204 shares in the company, valued at $543,060. The trade was a 53.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Gomiero Mirella Basolli sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.80, for a total transaction of $148,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 34,530 shares in the company, valued at $511,044. This represents a 22.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 87,745 shares of company stock worth $1,314,175.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Afya

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of AFYA. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in Afya in the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in Afya in the second quarter worth $67,000. Militia Capital Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of Afya during the second quarter worth $71,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Afya during the second quarter worth $117,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of Afya by 15.7% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 10,170 shares of the company’s stock valued at $159,000 after buying an additional 1,377 shares in the last quarter. 88.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Afya

Afya Ltd. operates as a leading provider of medical education and training services in Brazil. The company offers a comprehensive suite of educational programs that span undergraduate medical degrees, residency exam preparation, continuing medical education (CME) and digital learning platforms. Through a network of partner institutions and its own campus operations, Afya supports students at every stage of the medical training continuum, from enrollment in medical schools to ongoing professional development for practicing physicians.

At the core of Afya’s offerings is its undergraduate medical program, delivered through a combination of in-person courses at affiliated campuses and fully digital curricula.