Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Afya in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Afya to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Wall Street Zen raised Afya from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $22.00 price target (down from $24.50) on shares of Afya in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $16.00 price target (down from $18.00) on shares of Afya in a report on Friday, January 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $17.30.

Afya Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AFYA opened at $15.23 on Tuesday. Afya has a 12 month low of $13.00 and a 12 month high of $19.90. The stock has a market cap of $1.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.43, a PEG ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 0.48. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $14.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $14.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 2.20 and a quick ratio of 2.20.

Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 11th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $147.08 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $174.74 million. Afya had a return on equity of 18.77% and a net margin of 20.31%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Afya will post 1.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Afya Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced an annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 25th were given a $0.656 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 433.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 25th. Afya’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.21%.

Insider Transactions at Afya

In other news, CEO Virgilio Deloy Capobian Gibbon sold 20,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.94, for a total value of $312,246.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 109,218 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,631,716.92. This trade represents a 16.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Lelio De Souza Junior sold 26,753 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.95, for a total value of $399,957.35. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 16,279 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $243,371.05. This trade represents a 62.17% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 79,943 shares of company stock valued at $1,197,778 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Afya

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Afya in the third quarter worth $1,092,000. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda acquired a new position in shares of Afya in the third quarter worth $2,895,000. Doma Perpetual Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Afya by 50.6% in the third quarter. Doma Perpetual Capital Management LLC now owns 891,639 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,910,000 after acquiring an additional 299,419 shares during the last quarter. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd increased its stake in shares of Afya by 22.3% in the fourth quarter. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd now owns 30,697 shares of the company’s stock worth $473,000 after acquiring an additional 5,599 shares during the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd increased its stake in shares of Afya by 28.6% in the fourth quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 46,207 shares of the company’s stock worth $712,000 after acquiring an additional 10,288 shares during the last quarter. 88.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.