Wall Street Zen Downgrades Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel (NYSE:ELPC) to Buy

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel (NYSE:ELPC) from "strong-buy" to "buy"; MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $10.40 target price.
• Shares opened at $11.45 and the company reported Q4 EPS of $0.11, beating the $0.08 estimate, but revenue was $1.25 billion versus $4.52 billion expected.
• Large institutional inflows: Letko Brosseau, Goldman Sachs, SPX Gestao and Robeco dramatically increased their stakes in the fourth quarter, signaling significant recent buying by institutions.

Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel (NYSE:ELPC - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

ELPC has been the topic of a number of other research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. They set a "buy" rating and a $10.40 target price on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded shares of Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $10.40.

Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel stock opened at $11.45 on Friday. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $10.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $9.89. The company has a market cap of $8.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.83, a PEG ratio of 3.64 and a beta of -0.11. Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel has a 12-month low of $6.13 and a 12-month high of $12.00.

Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel (NYSE:ELPC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.08 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $1.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.52 billion.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ELPC. Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. raised its stake in Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel by 10,965.8% during the fourth quarter. Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. now owns 7,276,402 shares of the company's stock valued at $69,199,000 after buying an additional 7,210,646 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel by 575.4% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,078,808 shares of the company's stock worth $10,259,000 after acquiring an additional 919,086 shares during the last quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda increased its holdings in shares of Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel by 1,194.4% during the fourth quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda now owns 918,127 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,731,000 after acquiring an additional 847,198 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its holdings in shares of Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel by 288.1% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 653,418 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,214,000 after acquiring an additional 485,063 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in shares of Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel in the 4th quarter worth about $3,935,000.

Companhia Paranaense de Energia - Copel Company Profile

Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel is a Brazilian utility company primarily engaged in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. Established in 1954, Copel operates a diversified portfolio of power plants, with a strong emphasis on hydroelectric facilities supplemented by thermal and renewable energy sources. The company's integrated network spans the entirety of Paraná state, delivering electricity services to residential, commercial and industrial customers through a combination of high-voltage transmission lines and local distribution networks.

In addition to its core power business, Copel has expanded into telecommunications through its Copel Telecom subsidiary.

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