Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) Cut to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Saturday.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on AFYA. Zacks Research cut Afya from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Afya from $21.50 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Afya in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Afya from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $18.00.

Afya Trading Down 0.4%

Afya stock opened at $13.79 on Friday. Afya has a 52-week low of $13.00 and a 52-week high of $16.50. The company has a quick ratio of 2.20, a current ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.41, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.34. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $14.24 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $14.40.

Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported $0.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $187.80 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $189.62 million. Afya had a net margin of 20.55% and a return on equity of 17.58%. Sell-side analysts expect that Afya will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Lelio De Souza Junior sold 36,204 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total value of $543,060.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Gomiero Mirella Basolli sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.80, for a total value of $148,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 34,530 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $511,044. This trade represents a 22.46% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 87,745 shares of company stock worth $1,314,175 in the last three months.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Afya

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Afya by 167.3% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 45,093 shares of the company’s stock valued at $809,000 after acquiring an additional 28,226 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Afya by 85.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 52,111 shares of the company’s stock worth $931,000 after purchasing an additional 23,961 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Afya in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $117,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of Afya by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 68,169 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,217,000 after purchasing an additional 3,626 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in Afya during the second quarter valued at approximately $249,000. 88.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Afya

Afya Ltd. operates as a leading provider of medical education and training services in Brazil. The company offers a comprehensive suite of educational programs that span undergraduate medical degrees, residency exam preparation, continuing medical education (CME) and digital learning platforms. Through a network of partner institutions and its own campus operations, Afya supports students at every stage of the medical training continuum, from enrollment in medical schools to ongoing professional development for practicing physicians.

At the core of Afya’s offerings is its undergraduate medical program, delivered through a combination of in-person courses at affiliated campuses and fully digital curricula.