Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Laureate Education from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Laureate Education from $26.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Laureate Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 20th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Laureate Education in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Laureate Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Laureate Education presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $33.00.

Laureate Education Trading Down 1.7%

The firm has a market capitalization of $4.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.46 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. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $30.21 and its 200 day moving average is $27.03.

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

Laureate Education announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, October 30th that allows the company to repurchase $150.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 3.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Laureate Education

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Aviva PLC acquired a new stake in Laureate Education during the 2nd quarter valued at $488,000. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Laureate Education by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 367,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,513,000 after purchasing an additional 13,620 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Laureate Education by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,060,176 shares of the company’s stock worth $267,081,000 after buying an additional 387,567 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Laureate Education by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 911,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,314,000 after buying an additional 20,876 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Laureate Education by 5.2% during the first 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. 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.