Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel (NYSE:ELPC) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel Unsponsored ADR (NYSE:ELPC) saw strong trading volume on Tuesday . 861,231 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 162% from the previous session’s volume of 328,888 shares.The stock last traded at $11.6890 and had previously closed at $11.95.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $10.40 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel in a research report on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $10.40.

Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel Stock Down 2.3%

The stock has a market cap of $8.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.49, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.06. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $12.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $10.83.

Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel (NYSE:ELPC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.19 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $1.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.13 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel Unsponsored ADR will post 0.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a special dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.1904 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 1st. Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel’s payout ratio is currently 101.75%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel news, Director Pedro Franco Sales sold 153,700 shares of Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $3.19, for a total transaction of $490,303.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 74,844 shares in the company, valued at approximately $238,752.36. The trade was a 67.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link.

Institutional Trading of Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ELPC. Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. increased its stake in Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel by 10,965.8% during the 4th quarter. Letko Brosseau & Associates Inc. now owns 7,276,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,199,000 after purchasing an additional 7,210,646 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel by 575.4% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,078,808 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,259,000 after purchasing an additional 919,086 shares in the last quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda increased its stake in Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel by 1,194.4% during the 4th quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda now owns 918,127 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,731,000 after purchasing an additional 847,198 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its stake in Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel by 288.1% during the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 653,418 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,214,000 after purchasing an additional 485,063 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,935,000.

About Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel

Companhia Paranaense de Energia – Copel is a Brazilian utility company primarily engaged in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. Established in 1954, Copel operates a diversified portfolio of power plants, with a strong emphasis on hydroelectric facilities supplemented by thermal and renewable energy sources. The company’s integrated network spans the entirety of Paraná state, delivering electricity services to residential, commercial and industrial customers through a combination of high-voltage transmission lines and local distribution networks.

In addition to its core power business, Copel has expanded into telecommunications through its Copel Telecom subsidiary.