YPF Sociedad Anónima (NYSE:YPF) Rating Increased to Buy at HSBC

YPF Sociedad Anónima (NYSE:YPF) was upgraded by research analysts at HSBC from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a $60.00 price target on the oil and gas exploration company’s stock. HSBC’s price target indicates a potential upside of 19.88% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. UBS Group raised their price target on YPF Sociedad Anónima from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Zacks Research lowered shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Wednesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, YPF Sociedad Anónima has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.67.

YPF Sociedad Anónima Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:YPF opened at $50.05 on Monday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $44.93. YPF Sociedad Anónima has a 1 year low of $22.82 and a 1 year high of $57.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The company has a market capitalization of $19.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.34 and a beta of 1.28.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Matias Osvaldo Farina purchased 8,875 shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $45.22 per share, for a total transaction of $401,327.50. Following the purchase, the vice president owned 55,687 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,518,166.14. This trade represents a 18.96% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Horacio Daniel Marin acquired 2,840 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $46.35 per share, with a total value of $131,634.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 92,193 shares in the company, valued at $4,273,145.55. This represents a 3.18% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have acquired 11,792 shares of company stock valued at $537,153.

Institutional Trading of YPF Sociedad Anónima

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima during the second quarter worth $27,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima by 488.3% in the 3rd quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 1,353 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,123 shares during the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima during the 4th quarter valued at $59,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of YPF Sociedad Anónima by 13.0% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,934 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $88,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its position in YPF Sociedad Anónima by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 2,598 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 314 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 10.08% of the company’s stock.

About YPF Sociedad Anónima

YPF Sociedad Anónima (NYSE: YPF) is an integrated oil and gas company headquartered in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The company’s primary businesses encompass upstream exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas, midstream transportation and storage, and downstream refining and distribution. YPF operates several major refineries and a nationwide network of service stations, supplying fuels, lubricants, and petrochemical products to both retail and industrial customers.

Founded in 1922 as Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales, YPF was the world’s first state‐owned oil company.