Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) Shares Gap Up on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Afya Limited's stock price increased from a previous close of $15.04 to an opening price of $16.16 following an upgrade from JPMorgan Chase & Co. from a neutral to an overweight rating.
• The new price target set by JPMorgan is $24.50, reflecting an increase from the prior target of $23.50.
• Institutional ownership of Afya is substantial, with 88.02% of the company's stock held by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Afya Limited (NASDAQ:AFYA - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Monday after Wall Street Zen upgraded the stock from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating. The stock had previously closed at $15.04, but opened at $16.16. Afya shares last traded at $15.25, with a volume of 82,712 shares trading hands.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on AFYA. UBS Group raised shares of Afya from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and cut their price target for the company from $19.50 to $19.00 in a research report on Monday, September 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Afya from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $23.50 to $24.50 in a research report on Monday, September 8th. Citigroup raised shares of Afya from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the company from $16.00 to $14.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley set a $17.50 price target on shares of Afya and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Afya to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $18.20.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Afya

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Doma Perpetual Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Afya by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. Doma Perpetual Capital Management LLC now owns 592,220 shares of the company's stock worth $10,619,000 after purchasing an additional 25,111 shares in the last quarter. Perpetual Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Afya by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 151,180 shares of the company's stock worth $2,700,000 after acquiring an additional 2,730 shares during the last quarter. Carrera Capital Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Afya in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,750,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Afya by 54.3% in the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 97,313 shares of the company's stock worth $1,545,000 after acquiring an additional 34,246 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of Afya by 11.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 86,201 shares of the company's stock worth $1,540,000 after acquiring an additional 9,192 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.02% of the company's stock.

Afya Stock Down 0.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94. The company has a market cap of $1.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 0.56. The stock's fifty day moving average is $15.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $16.98.

About Afya

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.