Legato Capital Management LLC Makes New Investment in Laureate Education $LAUR

Legato Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 16,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $549,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAUR. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in Laureate Education by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 137,319 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,331,000 after acquiring an additional 359 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in Laureate Education by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 37,415 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,180,000 after acquiring an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Laureate Education by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 14,053 shares of the company’s stock worth $443,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Laureate Education by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 17,183 shares of the company’s stock worth $579,000 after acquiring an additional 565 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in Laureate Education by 109.0% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,097 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 572 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on LAUR. Weiss Ratings lowered Laureate Education from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday. Wall Street Zen lowered Laureate Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Laureate Education from $40.00 to $41.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Laureate Education from $32.00 to $36.50 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Laureate Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Laureate Education presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $40.00.

Laureate Education Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LAUR opened at $33.54 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $33.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $33.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.57. Laureate Education has a 1-year low of $21.16 and a 1-year high of $37.91. The company has a market cap of $4.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.65 and a beta of 0.40.

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($0.17) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.24) by $0.07. Laureate Education had a return on equity of 22.07% and a net margin of 16.08%.The company had revenue of $272.61 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $265.06 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.13) EPS. Laureate Education’s revenue was up 15.4% on a year-over-year basis. Laureate Education has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.000-2.080 EPS. Analysts forecast that Laureate Education will post 2.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Laureate Education Company Profile

Laureate Education, Inc (NASDAQ: LAUR) is a leading global network of higher education institutions dedicated to providing undergraduate, graduate and certificate programs to a diverse student body. The company designs and delivers academic offerings through a combination of campus-based and online platforms, focusing on fields such as business, health sciences, engineering, education and hospitality management. By aligning its curriculum with regional workforce needs, Laureate aims to equip students with practical skills and industry insights that support career advancement and lifelong learning.

Through its network, Laureate operates a broad portfolio of universities and colleges, including both longstanding campus institutions and digitally native programs.