Coursera (NYSE:COUR) Stock Rating Upgraded by Bank of America

Key Points

• Bank of America upgraded Coursera's stock rating from "underperform" to "neutral" with a new price target of $12.00, indicating a potential upside of nearly 32% from its previous close.
• Coursera reported significant quarterly earnings, with $0.12 earnings per share, surpassing estimates and showing a 9.9% increase in revenue year-over-year.
• Institutional investors own approximately 89.55% of Coursera's stock, reflecting strong confidence from major stakeholders in the company's future growth.

Coursera (NYSE:COUR - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Bank of America from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $12.00 price objective on the stock, up from their previous price objective of $7.00. Bank of America's price target would indicate a potential upside of 31.98% from the company's previous close.

COUR has been the topic of a number of other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Coursera from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $11.00 target price (up previously from $10.00) on shares of Coursera in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $12.00 target price on shares of Coursera in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen downgraded Coursera from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $11.00 target price on shares of Coursera in a report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $10.06.

Coursera Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE COUR opened at $9.09 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.47 billion, a PE ratio of -21.14 and a beta of 1.36. Coursera has a fifty-two week low of $5.76 and a fifty-two week high of $11.74. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $8.65 and a 200-day moving average of $8.11.

Coursera (NYSE:COUR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $0.03. Coursera had a negative return on equity of 7.22% and a negative net margin of 9.37%. The firm had revenue of $187.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $180.52 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.09 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Coursera will post -0.28 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Trading of Coursera

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Coursera by 49.0% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 38,746 shares of the company's stock worth $329,000 after purchasing an additional 12,749 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC raised its stake in shares of Coursera by 582.9% during the fourth quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 213,753 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,817,000 after acquiring an additional 182,453 shares in the last quarter. Penn Capital Management Company LLC bought a new stake in shares of Coursera during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $635,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Coursera by 19.6% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 260,866 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,217,000 after acquiring an additional 42,765 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in shares of Coursera by 340.9% during the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 273,147 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,322,000 after acquiring an additional 211,191 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.55% of the company's stock.

Coursera Company Profile

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.

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