Copa Holdings, S.A. (NYSE:CPA) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Copa Holdings, S.A. (NYSE:CPA) saw a large growth in short interest in the month of June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totalling 930,700 shares, a growth of 53.9% from the June 15th total of 604,700 shares. Approximately 3.0% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 264,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.5 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital World Investors increased its position in shares of Copa by 3.7% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 4,068,558 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $423,781,000 after purchasing an additional 144,806 shares in the last quarter. Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in Copa by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd. now owns 2,661,539 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $282,948,000 after buying an additional 70,300 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Copa by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 687,771 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $73,119,000 after acquiring an additional 38,326 shares in the last quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP grew its stake in shares of Copa by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 444,576 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $47,263,000 after acquiring an additional 25,811 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in shares of Copa by 34.8% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 346,078 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $36,047,000 after acquiring an additional 89,354 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.09% of the company’s stock.

Copa Stock Down 0.5 %

NYSE:CPA traded down $0.53 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $96.35. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 238,543 shares, compared to its average volume of 260,076. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.99. The company has a market capitalization of $3.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.22 and a beta of 1.47. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $98.34 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $99.42. Copa has a 12 month low of $78.12 and a 12 month high of $121.20.

Copa (NYSE:CPA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 15th. The transportation company reported $4.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.27 by $0.92. The firm had revenue of $893.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $866.73 million. Copa had a return on equity of 36.59% and a net margin of 16.42%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.99 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Copa will post 16.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Copa Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 31st were given a $1.61 dividend. This represents a $6.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.68%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 31st. Copa’s payout ratio is currently 46.33%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CPA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on Copa in a research note on Friday, May 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $140.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Copa from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of Copa from $160.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Copa from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 19th. Finally, Raymond James upped their target price on Copa from $165.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $157.60.

About Copa

Copa Holdings, SA, through its subsidiaries, provides airline passenger and cargo services. The company offers approximately 327 daily scheduled flights to 78 destinations in 32 countries in North, Central, and South America, as well as the Caribbean from its Panama City hub. As of December 31, 2022, it operated a fleet of 97 aircraft comprising 67 Boeing 737-800 Next Generation aircraft, 9 Boeing 737-700 Next Generation aircraft, 1 Boeing 737-800 Boeing Converted Freighter, and 20 737-MAX aircraft.