Wall Street Zen Upgrades Cosan (NYSE:CSAN) to "Buy"

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Cosan from “hold” to “buy,” though broader analyst sentiment remains negative, with a consensus “reduce” rating and an average price target of $3.85.
• Cosan shares opened at $2.90, near their 52-week low, while the company reported a quarterly loss of $0.06 per share, missing estimates by $0.07, despite revenue of $2.08 billion.
• Several hedge funds recently initiated or increased positions in Cosan, including Royal Bank of Canada and Blue Trust, but the company continues to face weak profitability, negative margins, and high leverage.

Cosan (NYSE:CSAN - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment 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 brokerages have also recently issued reports on CSAN. Jefferies Financial Group cut Cosan to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Zacks Research upgraded Cosan to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Cosan in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. HSBC lowered Cosan from a "hold" rating to a "reduce" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $5.00 to $3.20 in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Cosan to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $3.85.

Cosan Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of Cosan stock opened at $2.90 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.34 and a beta of 0.71. Cosan has a one year low of $2.38 and a one year high of $6.01. The stock's 50-day moving average is $2.91 and its 200 day moving average is $3.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.76.

Cosan (NYSE:CSAN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, August 15th. The company reported ($0.06) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.01 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $996.01 million. Cosan had a negative return on equity of 12.58% and a negative net margin of 21.83%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Cosan will post -0.27 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cosan

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CSAN. SmartHarvest Portfolios LLC bought a new stake in Cosan during the 1st quarter worth approximately $46,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in Cosan in the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in shares of Cosan by 3,266.6% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 12,389 shares of the company's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 12,021 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Cosan by 12,141.9% during the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 12,854 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 12,749 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Cosan in the fourth quarter worth $53,000.

About Cosan

Cosan Limited NYSE: CSAN is a Brazilian diversified energy and logistics group focused on agribusiness, fuels, and infrastructure. Its core activities include the cultivation of sugarcane, production of ethanol and sugar, generation of bioelectricity from bagasse, and distribution of fuels under the Raízen joint venture with Shell. Through its subsidiary Moove, Cosan is a leading global producer of base oils and lubricants, while Comgás serves as one of Brazil's largest natural gas distributors.

Founded in 1936 in the state of São Paulo, Cosan has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions.

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