Cosan (NYSE:CSAN) Trading Up 4% – Should You Buy?

Cosan S.A. Sponsored ADR (NYSE:CSAN) rose 4% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $2.98 and last traded at $3.0050. Approximately 1,311,099 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 38% from the average daily volume of 2,107,805 shares. The stock had previously closed at $2.89.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Cosan to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Zacks Research upgraded Cosan to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. HSBC cut Cosan from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $5.00 to $3.20 in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Wall Street Zen raised Cosan from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Cosan in a research note on Friday, September 4th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cosan currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $3.85.

Cosan Stock Down 3.4%

The company has a market capitalization of $2.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.32 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 1.87 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $2.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $3.46.

Cosan (NYSE:CSAN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, August 15th. The company reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.01 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $996.01 million. Cosan had a negative net margin of 21.83% and a negative return on equity of 12.58%. Sell-side analysts expect that Cosan S.A. Sponsored ADR will post -0.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cosan

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CSAN. SmartHarvest Portfolios LLC acquired a new position in Cosan in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Cosan during the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Cosan by 3,266.6% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 12,389 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 12,021 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Cosan by 12,141.9% in the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 12,854 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 12,749 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Cosan in the fourth quarter valued at $53,000.

Cosan Company Profile

Cosan SA (NYSE: CSAN) is a Brazil-based energy and infrastructure company with operations and investments across fuel distribution, sugar and ethanol, natural gas, logistics, lubricants and agricultural land management. The company operates primarily through subsidiaries and affiliated businesses, including stakes in businesses that produce renewable fuels, distribute energy and transport commodities.

Through Raízen, its joint venture with Shell, Cosan is involved in the production and marketing of sugar and ethanol, the generation of electricity from sugarcane biomass and the distribution of fuels through service stations and commercial channels.