Cosan (NYSE:CSAN) Shares Up 6.5% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Cosan S.A. Sponsored ADR's share price increased by 6.5% during mid-day trading, reaching as high as $4.30, up from a previous close of $4.05.
• Wall Street Zen downgraded Cosan's rating from "hold" to "sell" in a recent research note, reflecting concerns about the company's financial performance.
• The company reported a negative net margin of 28.08% and a negative return on equity of 27.61% in its latest quarterly earnings report.

Cosan S.A. Sponsored ADR (NYSE:CSAN - Get Free Report)'s share price was up 6.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $4.30 and last traded at $4.31. Approximately 552,411 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 59% from the average daily volume of 1,336,551 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.05.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Cosan from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has issued a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Cosan currently has a consensus rating of "Strong Buy" and an average price target of $19.00.

Cosan Trading Up 4.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.88, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.13. The company has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a PE ratio of 3.01, a PEG ratio of 0.12 and a beta of 0.98. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $4.60 and a 200 day moving average of $5.06.

Cosan (NYSE:CSAN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 14th. The company reported ($0.36) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Cosan had a negative net margin of 28.08% and a negative return on equity of 27.61%. The company had revenue of $1.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Cosan S.A. Sponsored ADR will post 0.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Cosan

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cosan in the second quarter valued at $3,049,000. Citadel Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Cosan by 1,204.6% during the fourth quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 498,181 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,710,000 after buying an additional 459,995 shares during the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in Cosan by 826.8% during the 4th quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 441,414 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,401,000 after buying an additional 393,784 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. raised its stake in shares of Cosan by 28.3% during the fourth quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 1,452,659 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,670,000 after acquiring an additional 320,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cosan by 3,995.3% in the 1st quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 306,859 shares of the company's stock worth $1,602,000 after buying an additional 299,366 shares during the period.

About Cosan

Cosan SA engages in the fuel distribution business. It operates through Raízen, Compass, Moove, Rumo, and Radar segments. The company's Raízen segment engages in the production, commercialization, origination, and trading of ethanol, bioenergy, renewable sources, and sugar; trading and resale of electricity; and distribution and commercialization of fuels and lubricants.