Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP (NYSE:SBS) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP (NYSE:SBS)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $17.92, but opened at $18.61. Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP shares last traded at $18.78, with a volume of 158,628 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday.

Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP Trading Up 4.4 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $16.94 and its 200-day moving average is $16.15. The company has a market cap of $12.78 billion, a PE ratio of 7.36 and a beta of 1.15.

Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP (NYSE:SBS) last posted its earnings results on Monday, March 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.06 by $0.43. Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP had a net margin of 25.62% and a return on equity of 27.73%. The firm had revenue of $981.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.89 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP will post 2.17 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP by 24.8% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 203,725 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,374,000 after buying an additional 40,533 shares during the period. Walleye Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP in the 3rd quarter worth about $255,000. Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,275,000. Paloma Partners Management Co bought a new position in Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP during the 3rd quarter valued at about $425,000. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP by 334.0% in the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 143,658 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,376,000 after purchasing an additional 110,558 shares during the last quarter. 10.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Companhia de Saneamento Básico do Estado de São Paulo – SABESP

Companhia de Saneamento Basico do Estado de Sao Paulo SABESP engages in the provision of water and sewage service. It also offers advisory services on the rational use of water, planning and commercial, and financial and operational management. The company was founded on September 6, 1973 and is headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil.