YPF Sociedad Anónima (NYSE:YPF) Reaches New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

YPF Sociedad Anónima (NYSE:YPF) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $49.00 and last traded at $48.69, with a volume of 2401512 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $47.99.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on YPF shares. Weiss Ratings downgraded YPF Sociedad Anónima from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley upgraded YPF Sociedad Anónima from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Zacks Research upgraded YPF Sociedad Anónima from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. UBS Group upped their price objective on YPF Sociedad Anónima from $37.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded YPF Sociedad Anónima from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.50.

YPF Sociedad Anónima Stock Up 1.5%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.15 billion, a PE ratio of -46.82 and a beta of 1.21. The business has a 50 day moving average of $43.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.09.

YPF Sociedad Anónima (NYSE:YPF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $5.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.04 billion. YPF Sociedad Anónima had a positive return on equity of 1.11% and a negative net margin of 2.16%. Analysts predict that YPF Sociedad Anónima will post 6.96 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at YPF Sociedad Anónima

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On YPF Sociedad Anónima

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sunbelt Securities Inc. raised its stake in YPF Sociedad Anónima by 488.3% in the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,353 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 1,123 shares during the last quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in YPF Sociedad Anónima in the fourth quarter valued at about $43,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in YPF Sociedad Anónima in the fourth quarter valued at about $59,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in YPF Sociedad Anónima by 58.8% in the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,034 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $74,000 after buying an additional 1,123 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in YPF Sociedad Anónima by 13.7% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 2,598 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $94,000 after buying an additional 314 shares during the last quarter. 10.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

YPF Sociedad Anónima Company Profile

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.