Cosan (NYSE:CSAN) Trading Up 4% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Cosan shares rose 4% to about $3.01 in mid-day trading, though volume was 38% below the stock’s average daily level.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: four firms rate the stock Hold and two rate it Sell, producing a consensus “Reduce” rating and an average price target of $3.85.
• Cosan reported a quarterly loss of $0.06 per share, missing estimates by $0.07, alongside a negative 21.83% net margin and 12.58% negative return on equity; several hedge funds nevertheless increased their positions.

Cosan S.A. Sponsored ADR (NYSE:CSAN - Get Free Report) shares traded up 4% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $2.98 and last traded at $3.0050. Approximately 1,311,099 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 38% from the average daily volume of 2,107,805 shares. The stock had previously closed at $2.89.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on CSAN. Citigroup raised shares of Cosan to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Cosan in a report on Friday, September 4th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Cosan to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. HSBC lowered Cosan from a "hold" rating to a "reduce" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $5.00 to $3.20 in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Cosan from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, September 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $3.85.

Cosan Trading Up 2.6%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.94 billion, a PE ratio of -1.37 and a beta of 0.71. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $2.91 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3.48.

Cosan (NYSE:CSAN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, August 15th. The company reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.01 by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $996.01 million. Cosan had a negative return on equity of 12.58% and a negative net margin of 21.83%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Cosan S.A. Sponsored ADR will post -0.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cosan

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CSAN. UBS Group AG lifted its position in shares of Cosan by 36.9% in the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 3,492,792 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,797,000 after acquiring an additional 941,548 shares in the last quarter. Monaco Asset Management SAM lifted its holdings in shares of Cosan by 200.5% in the fourth quarter. Monaco Asset Management SAM now owns 3,004,813 shares of the company's stock worth $11,869,000 after buying an additional 2,004,813 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in shares of Cosan by 5,210.4% during the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 776,592 shares of the company's stock worth $3,068,000 after acquiring an additional 761,968 shares during the last quarter. XTX Topco Ltd grew its stake in Cosan by 1,312.8% during the fourth quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 588,722 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,325,000 after acquiring an additional 547,051 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in Cosan by 235.0% during the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 487,514 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,243,000 after acquiring an additional 341,973 shares in the last quarter.

Cosan Company Profile

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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