Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) Hits New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) shares reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $32.47 and last traded at $32.51, with a volume of 417363 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $31.47.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on LAUR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Laureate Education in a research report on Wednesday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $40.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Laureate Education from $26.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Laureate Education in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research lowered Laureate Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Laureate Education from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Laureate Education presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.00.

Laureate Education Stock Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average of $30.13 and a 200 day moving average of $26.92. The company has a market capitalization of $4.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.85 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $400.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $391.77 million. Laureate Education had a return on equity of 22.99% and a net margin of 12.86%.The business’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.56 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Laureate Education will post 1.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Laureate Education announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, October 30th that allows the company to repurchase $150.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 3.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Laureate Education

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Aviva PLC purchased a new position in shares of Laureate Education during the 2nd quarter worth about $488,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Laureate Education by 3.9% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 367,368 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,513,000 after buying an additional 13,620 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Laureate Education by 3.1% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,060,176 shares of the company’s stock valued at $267,081,000 after buying an additional 387,567 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Laureate Education by 2.3% in the second quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 911,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,314,000 after buying an additional 20,876 shares during the period. Finally, Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Laureate Education by 5.2% during the 1st quarter. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,489,257 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,455,000 after acquiring an additional 74,060 shares during the last quarter. 96.27% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Laureate Education

Laureate Education, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, offers higher education programs and services to students through a network of universities and higher education institutions. The company provides a range of undergraduate and graduate degree programs in the areas of business and management, medicine and health sciences, and engineering and information technology through campus-based, online, and hybrid programs.