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

Azul S.A. (NYSE:AZUL) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Stock traders acquired 6,075 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 125% compared to the typical daily volume of 2,695 put options.

Azul Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AZUL traded down $0.01 on Monday, reaching $3.12. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 62,809 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,003,489. Azul has a 52-week low of $2.02 and a 52-week high of $11.26. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $3.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $4.58. The company has a market cap of $1.32 billion, a P/E ratio of -1.27 and a beta of 1.98.

Azul (NYSE:AZUL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 12th. The company reported ($1.23) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.60) by ($0.63). The business had revenue of $800.65 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $791.43 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.81) EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Azul will post -1.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on AZUL. HSBC cut Azul from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $2.70 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Azul from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Azul from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $6.70 to $4.00 in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Azul from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Azul from $10.00 to $4.50 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $6.59.

Institutional Trading of Azul

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Azul by 9.5% in the second quarter. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. now owns 27,341 shares of the company’s stock valued at $109,000 after acquiring an additional 2,380 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in Azul by 35.9% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 10,649 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 2,812 shares during the period. Inspire Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Azul by 19.4% in the first quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 18,699 shares of the company’s stock worth $145,000 after purchasing an additional 3,042 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning purchased a new position in shares of Azul during the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Azul during the second quarter valued at approximately $51,000. 0.82% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.