Azul Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:AZUL)

Azul S.A. (NYSE:AZUL) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Investors acquired 7,813 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 743% compared to the typical volume of 927 put options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Azul

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Inspire Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Azul by 19.4% during the first quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 18,699 shares of the company’s stock worth $145,000 after buying an additional 3,042 shares during the period. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. lifted its position in Azul by 16.0% in the first quarter. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. now owns 24,961 shares of the company’s stock worth $194,000 after purchasing an additional 3,450 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd lifted its position in Azul by 46.4% in the fourth quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 68,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $659,000 after purchasing an additional 21,549 shares during the period. Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in Azul in the fourth quarter worth approximately $214,000. Finally, AXQ Capital LP acquired a new stake in Azul in the third quarter worth approximately $205,000. 0.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Azul Trading Up 7.8 %

Shares of NYSE AZUL opened at $4.14 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $5.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $7.05. The company has a market cap of $1.75 billion, a PE ratio of -1.70 and a beta of 2.01. Azul has a 12-month low of $3.70 and a 12-month high of $13.02.

Azul (NYSE:AZUL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 13th. The company reported ($0.57) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.53) by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $945.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $968.17 million. Sell-side analysts forecast that Azul will post -0.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Barclays lowered their price objective on Azul from $12.00 to $10.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on Azul in a research note on Friday, May 24th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $7.40 target price for the company. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $12.00 target price (down from $13.00) on shares of Azul in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $9.50 target price (down from $18.00) on shares of Azul in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $11.12.

Azul Company Profile

Azul SA, together with its subsidiaries, provides air transportation services in Brazil and internationally. As of December 31, 2023, the company operated approximately 1,000 daily departures to 160 destinations through a network of 300 non-stop routes with an operating fleet of 183 aircraft and a passenger contractual fleet of 189 aircraft.