Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to "Buy" Rating

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Afya from “hold” to “buy,” but the broader analyst consensus remains “Reduce,” with five hold ratings, one sell rating, and an average price target of $18.00.
• Afya exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $0.43 versus the $0.40 consensus estimate, while revenue of $187.8 million fell slightly short of forecasts.
• Insiders sold 87,745 shares worth approximately $1.31 million over the past 90 days, while institutional investors hold a substantial 88.02% of the company’s outstanding stock.

Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on AFYA. Bank of America reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Afya in a report on Thursday, June 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Afya from $21.50 to $21.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Afya from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Afya from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $18.00.

Afya Stock Performance

AFYA opened at $14.68 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $14.26 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $14.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 2.20 and a quick ratio of 2.20. The company has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.35. Afya has a 1-year low of $13.00 and a 1-year high of $16.50.

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

Insider Transactions at Afya

In other Afya news, VP Lélio de Souza, Jr. sold 36,204 shares of Afya stock in a transaction dated 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Gomiero Mirella Basolli sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.80, for a total value of $148,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 34,530 shares in the company, valued at $511,044. This represents a 22.46% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 87,745 shares of company stock valued at $1,314,175 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Afya

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Afya during the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of Afya during the second quarter worth $67,000. Militia Capital Partners LP acquired a new stake in Afya during the second quarter valued at $71,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Afya during the second quarter valued at $117,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in Afya by 15.7% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 10,170 shares of the company's stock valued at $159,000 after purchasing an additional 1,377 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.02% of the company's stock.

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.

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