Azul (NYSE:AZUL) Shares Gap Up – What’s Next?

Azul S.A. (NYSE:AZUL) shares gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $2.16, but opened at $2.30. Azul shares last traded at $2.24, with a volume of 460,602 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Seaport Res Ptn raised Azul from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Azul from $3.10 to $2.70 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Azul has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $6.40.

Azul Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $988.58 million, a P/E ratio of -0.33 and a beta of 1.95. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $2.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3.06.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Azul

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda raised 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 period. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Azul by 58.9% in the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 203,190 shares of the company’s stock worth $699,000 after buying an additional 75,291 shares in the last quarter. Long Focus Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Azul by 106.3% during the 2nd quarter. Long Focus Capital Management LLC now owns 4,454,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,816,000 after buying an additional 2,295,000 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in Azul by 2,466.5% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 598,670 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,395,000 after acquiring an additional 575,344 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning purchased a new stake in shares of Azul during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. 0.82% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Azul

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.