JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cuts Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) Price Target to $21.50

Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) had its price objective lowered by analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $22.00 to $21.50 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 49.20% from the company’s current price.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on AFYA. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Afya from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Bank of America downgraded shares of Afya from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $22.00 to $17.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Afya from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Afya to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Afya in a report on Monday, April 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.20.

Afya Stock Up 2.4%

Shares of NASDAQ AFYA traded up $0.34 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $14.41. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 99,906 shares, compared to its average volume of 110,145. The company has a current ratio of 2.20, a quick ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Afya has a fifty-two week low of $13.00 and a fifty-two week high of $19.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.87, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.48. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $14.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $14.65.

Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 11th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.05. Afya had a net margin of 20.31% and a return on equity of 18.77%. The company had revenue of $147.08 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.74 million. Equities research analysts predict that Afya will post 1.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Afya

In other Afya news, VP Lelio De Souza Junior sold 26,753 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.95, for a total value of $399,957.35. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 16,279 shares in the company, valued at $243,371.05. The trade was a 62.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP De Sousa Anibal Jose Grifo sold 14,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.41, for a total transaction of $215,740.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 31,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $477,710. This represents a 31.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 123,547 shares of company stock valued at $1,854,920. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Afya

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AFYA. Doma Perpetual Capital Management LLC increased its holdings 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 valued at $13,910,000 after purchasing an additional 299,419 shares during the last quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda acquired a new position in shares of Afya in the third quarter valued at $2,895,000. Swedbank AB increased its holdings in shares of Afya by 170.3% in the fourth quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 189,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,916,000 after purchasing an additional 119,200 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Afya in the second quarter valued at $731,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Afya in the third quarter valued at $610,000. 88.02% of the stock is currently 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.