YPF Sociedad Anónima (NYSE:YPF) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

Key Points

• YPF saw short interest drop 15.6% to 6,250,785 shares as of April 15, leaving a days-to-cover ratio of 2.6 and just 1.6% of shares sold short.
• Analyst sentiment has improved with multiple upgrades (including Morgan Stanley to overweight), leaving a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $45.67.
• Two company VPs sold large blocks of stock (12,719 and 3,430 shares), while the shares traded down 3.8% to $43.42 after reporting a quarterly EPS miss of ($1.67) versus a $0.77 estimate.

YPF Sociedad Anónima (NYSE:YPF - Get Free Report) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 6,250,785 shares, a decrease of 15.6% from the March 31st total of 7,405,484 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,397,128 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.6 days. Currently, 1.6% of the company's shares are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

YPF has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Zacks Research raised shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima from $37.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, YPF Sociedad Anónima currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $45.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at YPF Sociedad Anónima

In other YPF Sociedad Anónima news, VP Marcelo Gustavo Aldeco sold 12,719 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.61, for a total value of $554,675.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 101 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,404.61. This represents a 99.21% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Mauricio Alejandro Martin sold 3,430 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.60, for a total transaction of $149,548.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 14 shares of the company's stock, valued at $610.40. This trade represents a 99.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information.

Institutional Trading of YPF Sociedad Anónima

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. VR Advisory Services Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. VR Advisory Services Ltd now owns 3,605,533 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $87,578,000 after acquiring an additional 200,000 shares during the last quarter. Ping Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima by 36.1% in the 3rd quarter. Ping Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,017,000 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $48,993,000 after purchasing an additional 534,800 shares during the period. North of South Capital LLP lifted its stake in shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. North of South Capital LLP now owns 1,670,378 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $60,401,000 after purchasing an additional 50,395 shares during the period. UBS Group AG lifted its stake in shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima by 125.2% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 651,384 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $15,822,000 after purchasing an additional 362,155 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima by 161.2% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 568,507 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $17,880,000 after purchasing an additional 350,842 shares during the period. 10.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

YPF Sociedad Anónima Stock Down 3.8%

Shares of NYSE:YPF traded down $1.74 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $43.42. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,685,495 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,116,732. YPF Sociedad Anónima has a 12-month low of $22.82 and a 12-month high of $48.96. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $40.96 and a 200-day moving average of $37.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.08 billion, a P/E ratio of -20.58 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77.

YPF Sociedad Anónima (NYSE:YPF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The oil and gas exploration company reported ($1.67) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.77 by ($2.44). YPF Sociedad Anónima had a negative net margin of 4.48% and a negative return on equity of 0.26%. The firm had revenue of $4.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.14 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that YPF Sociedad Anónima will post 6.31 earnings per share for the current year.

About YPF Sociedad Anónima

YPF Sociedad Anónima NYSE: YPF is an integrated oil and gas company headquartered in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The company’s primary businesses encompass upstream exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas, midstream transportation and storage, and downstream refining and distribution. YPF operates several major refineries and a nationwide network of service stations, supplying fuels, lubricants, and petrochemical products to both retail and industrial customers.

Founded in 1922 as Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales, YPF was the world’s first state‐owned oil company.

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