Brokerages Set Afya Limited (NASDAQ:AFYA) Price Target at $18.00

Shares of Afya Limited (NASDAQ:AFYA) have received an average recommendation of “Reduce” from the six brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation and five have given a hold recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $18.00.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AFYA. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Afya from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. Zacks Research cut shares of Afya from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, August 21st. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Afya in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Afya from $21.50 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Afya from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st.

Afya Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of Afya stock opened at $14.68 on Monday. Afya has a 12-month low of $13.00 and a 12-month high of $16.50. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $14.34. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The company has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 0.35.

Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 14th. The company reported $0.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.03. Afya had a return on equity of 17.58% and a net margin of 20.55%.The firm had revenue of $187.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $189.62 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Afya will post 1.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Afya news, VP Lélio de Souza, Jr. sold 36,204 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.00, for a total value of $543,060.00. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Gomiero Mirella Basolli sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.80, for a total transaction of $148,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 34,530 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $511,044. This represents a 22.46% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 87,745 shares of company stock valued at $1,314,175 in the last three months. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Afya

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AFYA. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in Afya by 167.3% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 45,093 shares of the company’s stock valued at $809,000 after buying an additional 28,226 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 23,961 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in Afya during the second quarter valued at $117,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in Afya by 5.6% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 68,169 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,217,000 after acquiring an additional 3,626 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Afya during the 2nd quarter worth about $249,000. 88.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Afya Company Profile

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.