Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Laureate Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LAUR) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $18.30 and last traded at $17.52, with a volume of 25856 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $15.56.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Morgan Stanley lowered Laureate Education from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $17.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Friday, July 26th.

Laureate Education Stock Up 13.0 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $15.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.03 and a beta of 0.82.

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $499.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $483.69 million. Laureate Education had a net margin of 12.64% and a return on equity of 21.37%. Laureate Education’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.35 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Laureate Education, Inc. will post 1.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Laureate Education

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LAUR. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Laureate Education by 3.2% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 22,174 shares of the company’s stock valued at $368,000 after buying an additional 682 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its stake in shares of Laureate Education by 1.0% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 74,753 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,117,000 after acquiring an additional 759 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in shares of Laureate Education by 51.0% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,259 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 763 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in Laureate Education by 24.4% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 3,889 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 764 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in Laureate Education by 2.1% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 37,499 shares of the company’s stock worth $560,000 after purchasing an additional 783 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.27% of the company’s stock.

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.