Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) Rating Increased to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

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

Afya Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ AFYA opened at $14.68 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $14.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $14.34. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. Afya has a 12-month low of $13.00 and a 12-month high of $16.50. The company has a market cap of $1.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.35.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Lélio de Souza, Jr. sold 36,204 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total transaction of $543,060.00. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Gomiero Mirella Basolli sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.80, for a total value of $148,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 34,530 shares in the company, valued at $511,044. This trade represents a 22.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 87,745 shares of company stock valued at $1,314,175 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Afya during the 4th quarter valued at about $43,000. Militia Capital Partners LP acquired a new stake in Afya during the second quarter worth about $71,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in Afya in the second quarter worth about $67,000. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in Afya in the second quarter worth about $117,000. Finally, State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Afya in the second quarter valued at approximately $164,000. 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.