Coursera Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:COUR)

Coursera, Inc. (NYSE:COUR) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Friday. Stock investors acquired 5,405 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 247% compared to the typical daily volume of 1,557 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Coursera news, major shareholder Pale Fire Capital Se purchased 1,332,742 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 25th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $5.06 per share, with a total value of $6,743,674.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 27,806,415 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $140,700,459.90. This represents a 5.03% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Alan B. Cardenas sold 9,139 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.71, for a total transaction of $52,183.69. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 236,237 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,348,913.27. This represents a 3.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 16.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Coursera

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new stake in Coursera during the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Coursera by 63.2% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 5,555 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 2,152 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in Coursera by 299.7% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 5,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 4,433 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Coursera by 54.2% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 7,602 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 2,672 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP acquired a new position in Coursera during the second quarter worth $40,000. 89.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coursera Stock Down 25.1%

NYSE:COUR traded down $1.17 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $3.49. 28,203,144 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,111,652. The stock has a market cap of $922.76 million, a PE ratio of -5.21, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.24. Coursera has a 12 month low of $3.45 and a 12 month high of $8.89. The company has a fifty day moving average of $5.32 and a 200 day moving average of $5.71.

Coursera (NYSE:COUR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $376.70 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $368.52 million. Coursera had a negative net margin of 15.39% and a negative return on equity of 1.72%. Coursera’s revenue was up 94.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.10 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Coursera will post 0.20 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on COUR. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Coursera from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. Telsey Advisory Group lowered their price target on Coursera from $10.00 to $7.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings lowered Coursera from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Coursera from $8.00 to $6.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Coursera from $7.00 to $5.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $6.36.

Key Coursera News

Here are the key news stories impacting Coursera this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Coursera reported third-quarter revenue of approximately $377 million and adjusted earnings of $0.21 per share, exceeding consensus estimates. Revenue increased 94% year over year, while earnings more than doubled from $0.10 per share in the prior-year quarter. Coursera Q3 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Management expects more than $150 million in gross cost savings by year-end as integration efforts progress, supporting the potential for margin expansion and operating efficiencies. Coursera Q4 Revenue and Cost Savings Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Unusual options activity saw traders purchase 5,405 call options, roughly 247% above average call volume, indicating heightened speculative interest and potential bullish positioning.

About Coursera

Coursera, Inc is an online learning platform that provides access to courses, professional certificates, guided projects, and degree programs. The company works with universities, colleges, and industry partners to offer content in areas such as business, technology, data science, computer science, and personal development.

Coursera serves individual learners, businesses, governments, and academic institutions in countries around the world. Its enterprise and government offerings support employee training, workforce development, and large-scale education initiatives, while its consumer platform allows learners to enroll in individual courses or broader credential and degree programs.

Coursera was founded in 2012 by computer-science professors Andrew Ng and Daphne Koller.