Afya Limited (NASDAQ:AFYA) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Short interest fell 14.1% to 541,994 shares as of March 31, implying a short-interest ratio of 4.4 days and about 0.6% of shares sold short.
• Analysts are mixed: Bank of America and UBS cut targets/ratings while Wall Street Zen and Zacks upgraded, leaving a MarketBeat consensus of "Hold" with an average target of $17.30.
• Company insiders have been selling shares recently—including the VP and CFO—with insider sales totaling 120,222 shares (~$1.80 million) over the last quarter; insiders now own 0.80% of the stock.

Afya Limited (NASDAQ:AFYA - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 541,994 shares, a drop of 14.1% from the March 15th total of 630,644 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 124,130 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.4 days. Approximately 0.6% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on AFYA shares. Bank of America downgraded Afya from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $22.00 to $17.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $16.00 price objective (down from $18.00) on shares of Afya in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Wall Street Zen raised Afya from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 14th. Zacks Research raised Afya from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Afya in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $17.30.

Afya Stock Performance

Afya stock opened at $15.75 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.20. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $14.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $14.68. The company has a market capitalization of $1.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.79, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.48. Afya has a fifty-two week low of $13.00 and a fifty-two week high of $19.90.

Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 11th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $147.08 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.74 million. Afya had a return on equity of 18.77% and a net margin of 20.31%. On average, analysts anticipate that Afya will post 1.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Afya Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared an annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 6th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 25th were given a dividend of $0.656 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 25th. This represents a yield of 433.0%. Afya's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.21%.

Insider Transactions at Afya

In related news, VP Lelio De Souza Junior sold 26,753 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.95, for a total value of $399,957.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 16,279 shares of the company's stock, valued at $243,371.05. This trade represents a 62.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Luis Andre Carpintero Blanco sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.20, for a total value of $152,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 51,103 shares of the company's stock, valued at $776,765.60. The trade was a 16.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 120,222 shares of company stock valued at $1,802,052. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Afya

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AFYA. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in Afya by 167.3% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 45,093 shares of the company's stock worth $809,000 after buying an additional 28,226 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Afya by 85.1% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 52,111 shares of the company's stock worth $931,000 after purchasing an additional 23,961 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Afya during the second quarter worth $117,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in shares of Afya by 5.6% during the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 68,169 shares of the company's stock worth $1,217,000 after purchasing an additional 3,626 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Afya during the second quarter worth $249,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.02% of the company's stock.

Afya Company Profile

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.

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