Afya Limited (NASDAQ:AFYA) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Afya Limited (NASDAQ:AFYA) have earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $17.30.

AFYA has been the topic of several recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Afya to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Afya from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Bank of America cut Afya from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $22.00 to $17.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $16.00 target price (down from $18.00) on shares of Afya in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Afya in a report on Wednesday, January 21st.

Insider Activity at Afya

In other news, CEO Virgilio Deloy Capobian Gibbon sold 19,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.98, for a total value of $292,110.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Over the last three months, insiders sold 26,520 shares of company stock valued at $398,094. Corporate insiders own 0.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Afya

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in Afya by 15.7% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 10,170 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,000 after acquiring an additional 1,377 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Afya in the 4th quarter valued at about $43,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position 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 valued at $1,217,000 after acquiring an additional 3,626 shares during the period. Dodge & Cox increased its stake in shares of Afya by 12.8% during the 2nd quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 35,262 shares of the company’s stock worth $630,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Militia Capital Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Afya during the 2nd quarter worth about $71,000. 88.02% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Afya Trading Down 0.1%

NASDAQ:AFYA opened at $14.96 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $1.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 0.48. Afya has a twelve month low of $13.00 and a twelve month high of $19.90. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $14.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $14.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 2.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

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. The company had revenue of $147.08 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $174.74 million. Afya had a net margin of 20.31% and a return on equity of 18.77%. As a group, analysts expect that Afya will post 1.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Afya Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed an annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.656 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 25th. This represents a dividend yield of 433.0%. Afya’s dividend payout ratio is currently 45.21%.

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.