Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) Rating Increased to Neutral at Citigroup

Key Points

• Afya has been upgraded by Citigroup from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating, with a target price of $14.00, indicating a potential upside of 1.23% from the stock's previous close.
• The stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" among analysts, with an average price target of $17.40.
• Institutional investors hold 88.02% of Afya's shares, with significant increases in holdings reported by firms like Goldman Sachs, which raised its position by 167.3% in the first quarter.

Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Citigroup from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report released on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has a $14.00 price target on the stock, down from their previous price target of $16.00. Citigroup's price objective points to a potential upside of 2.34% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $19.50 price objective (up previously from $17.50) on shares of Afya in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Afya from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $17.40.

Afya Stock Performance

Shares of AFYA stock traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $13.68. 133,427 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 109,105. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.36, a PEG ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a current ratio of 1.42. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $16.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.30. Afya has a 52 week low of $13.47 and a 52 week high of $19.90.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Afya

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its position in shares of Afya by 40.0% in the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 2,800 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in shares of Afya by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 56,341 shares of the company's stock valued at $895,000 after buying an additional 2,032 shares in the last quarter. Dodge & Cox raised its position in shares of Afya by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 31,262 shares of the company's stock valued at $496,000 after buying an additional 2,079 shares in the last quarter. Perpetual Ltd raised its position in shares of Afya by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 151,180 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,700,000 after buying an additional 2,730 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Afya by 47.6% in the 4th quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 9,300 shares of the company's stock valued at $148,000 after buying an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. 88.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Afya Company Profile

Afya Limited, through its subsidiaries, operates as a medical education group in Brazil. The company operates through three segments: Undergrad, Continuing Education, and Digital Services. It offers educational products and services, including medical schools, medical residency preparatory courses, graduate courses, and other programs to lifelong medical learners enrolled across its distribution network, as well as to third-party medical schools.