Coursera (NYSE:COUR) Hits New 52-Week High Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Key Points

• Coursera's stock reached a new 12-month high of $12.40 after reporting better-than-expected quarterly earnings, with a revenue of $187.10 million, surpassing analysts' expectations.
• The company posted earnings per share of $0.12, beating the consensus estimate of $0.09, and marking a 9.9% increase in revenue compared to the same quarter last year.
• Several analysts have raised their price targets for Coursera, with Cantor Fitzgerald increasing it from $10.00 to $13.00, indicating positive sentiment from Wall Street.
• Insider trading activities showed notable sales from executives, with 16.80% of the stock currently owned by company insiders, signaling potential confidence or restructuring within the company.

Coursera, Inc. (NYSE:COUR - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $12.40 and last traded at $11.91, with a volume of 5364421 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $9.08.

The company reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $187.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $180.52 million. Coursera had a negative net margin of 7.05% and a negative return on equity of 5.22%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.09 EPS.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on COUR. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Coursera from $9.00 to $11.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $12.00 price objective on shares of Coursera in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Coursera from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on Coursera from $10.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Coursera from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Coursera has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $11.25.

Insider Activity at Coursera

In other news, SVP Alan B. Cardenas sold 6,101 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.65, for a total transaction of $52,773.65. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 293,368 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,537,633.20. This represents a 2.04% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Amanda Clark sold 9,334 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.48, for a total value of $79,152.32. Following the transaction, the director owned 85,573 shares in the company, valued at approximately $725,659.04. This trade represents a 9.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 24,770 shares of company stock valued at $211,087 over the last quarter. 16.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coursera

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Coursera by 206.0% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 120,480 shares of the company's stock worth $1,024,000 after buying an additional 81,110 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in shares of Coursera by 340.9% in the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 273,147 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,322,000 after purchasing an additional 211,191 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of Coursera during the 4th quarter worth about $208,000. LPL Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Coursera in the 4th quarter worth $142,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Coursera by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,147,159 shares of the company's stock worth $103,251,000 after buying an additional 440,948 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.55% of the company's stock.

Coursera Stock Down 3.5%

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -36.56 and a beta of 1.36. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $8.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $8.16.

About Coursera

Coursera, Inc operates an online educational content platform in the United States, Europe, Africa, the Asia Pacific, the Middle East, and internationally. It operates in three segments: Consumer, Enterprise, and Degrees. The company offers guided projects, courses, and specializations, as well as online degrees; and certificates for entry-level professional, non-entry level professional, university, and MasterTrack.