Azul (NYSE:AZUL) Trading Down 3.8% – Here’s Why

Azul S.A. (NYSE:AZUL) was down 3.8% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $2.26 and last traded at $2.27. Approximately 196,671 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 90% from the average daily volume of 1,939,397 shares. The stock had previously closed at $2.36.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AZUL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Azul from $10.00 to $4.50 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Azul to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Seaport Res Ptn lowered Azul from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Azul from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $6.70 to $4.00 in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of Azul from $8.00 to $6.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. 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, Azul currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $6.59.

Azul Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $931.67 million, a PE ratio of -0.31 and a beta of 1.92. The company’s 50-day moving average is $2.86 and its 200 day moving average is $3.70.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Azul

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda boosted its stake in Azul by 13,831.7% during the 2nd quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda now owns 292,565 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,170,000 after purchasing an additional 290,465 shares during the last quarter. Long Focus Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Azul by 106.3% during the second quarter. Long Focus Capital Management LLC now owns 4,454,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,816,000 after purchasing an additional 2,295,000 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in shares of Azul by 2,466.5% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 598,670 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,395,000 after buying an additional 575,344 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning purchased a new stake in shares of Azul during the third quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Perpetual Ltd increased its holdings in Azul by 4.5% in the 3rd quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 2,354,953 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,101,000 after buying an additional 100,639 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

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.