Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Morgan Stanley Analyst Says

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley raised Laureate Education’s price target to $36.50 from $34.50 but maintained an “underweight” rating, implying 7.67% downside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and $40.90 average target. Shares traded at $39.53, near their 52-week high of $40.92.
• Laureate exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.00 EPS versus $0.96 expected and $615.9 million in revenue, up 17.5% year over year; however, insiders sold more than $19.1 million of stock over the past three months.

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR - Get Free Report) had its price objective boosted by research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $34.50 to $36.50 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "underweight" rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley's price target indicates a potential downside of 7.67% from the company's previous close.

A number of other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $41.00 price objective on shares of Laureate Education in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Barrington Research initiated coverage on shares of Laureate Education in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $45.00 target price for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Laureate Education from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a)" rating in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $40.90.

Laureate Education Stock Up 0.2%

NASDAQ:LAUR traded up $0.08 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $39.53. 338,355 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,319,087. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $37.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $35.93. The firm has a market cap of $5.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.71. Laureate Education has a twelve month low of $24.98 and a twelve month high of $40.92.

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $615.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $607.56 million. Laureate Education had a return on equity of 23.54% and a net margin of 17.57%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.79 EPS. Laureate Education has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.040-2.100 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Laureate Education will post 2.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Ian Snow sold 427,019 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.26, for a total value of $15,483,708.94. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,646,324 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $59,695,708.24. The trade was a 20.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last three months, insiders sold 521,229 shares of company stock worth $19,103,350. 1.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Laureate Education

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Laureate Education by 33.4% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 281 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of Laureate Education in the second quarter valued at about $110,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Laureate Education by 3,976.5% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,302 shares of the company's stock valued at $115,000 after purchasing an additional 3,221 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Laureate Education in the fourth quarter worth about $120,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Laureate Education by 60.1% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,349 shares of the company's stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 2,007 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.27% of the company's stock.

Laureate Education Company Profile

Laureate Education, Inc is a provider of higher education services that operates universities and other postsecondary institutions. Through its network of institutions, the company offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs, professional education, and related academic services in fields such as business, health sciences, engineering, technology, and social sciences.

Laureate primarily serves students in Latin America, with operations in Mexico and Peru. Its institutions deliver programs through in-person, online, and blended learning formats, and are intended to serve both traditional university students and working professionals.

The company traces its roots to Sylvan Learning Systems, which expanded internationally and adopted the Laureate name in 2004.

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