Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) Stock Rating Raised to "Hold" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Afya from “strong sell” to “hold,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “Hold” with a $17.75 target price.
• Afya opened at $13.91, with a $1.30 billion market capitalization and a P/E ratio of 8.48; its shares have traded between $11.62 and $16.16 over the past year.
• The company beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $0.43 EPS versus the $0.40 consensus estimate, although revenue of $187.8 million fell slightly short of expectations.

Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, Zacks reports.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Bradesco Corretora upgraded shares of Afya to an "outperform" rating and set a $17.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Bank of America reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Afya in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Afya from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, September 5th. Weiss Ratings cut Afya from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Afya from $21.50 to $21.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Afya has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $17.75.

Afya Stock Performance

NASDAQ AFYA opened at $13.91 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a current ratio of 2.20. The stock's fifty day moving average is $13.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $14.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 0.34. Afya has a fifty-two week low of $11.62 and a fifty-two week high of $16.16.

Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 14th. The company reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.03. Afya had a net margin of 20.55% and a return on equity of 17.58%. The firm had revenue of $187.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $189.62 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Afya will post 1.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Afya

In related news, insider Santos Welder Ferreira sold 4,161 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.30, for a total transaction of $55,341.30. Following the transaction, the insider owned 35,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $465,500. This represents a 10.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in Afya during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $67,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP purchased a new position in Afya in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $325,000. Finally, Banco BTG Pactual S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Afya in the fourth quarter worth $462,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.02% of the company's stock.

About Afya

Afya Limited NASDAQ: AFYA is a Brazil-based medical education and health technology company. The company provides education and professional development for physicians and other healthcare professionals, with activities spanning undergraduate medical programs, medical residency preparation, specialization courses, continuing medical education and digital learning services.

Afya also develops technology-enabled products designed to support healthcare professionals throughout their careers.

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