Amundi Trims Stake in Laureate Education $LAUR

Key Points

• Amundi has decreased its stake in Laureate Education by 39.1%, selling 101,267 shares, while still holding 157,901 shares valued at approximately $3.2 million.
• Laureate Education's stock has been upgraded from a "hold" to a "strong-buy" rating, with an average target price set at $24.00.
• Laureate Education reported a $0.79 EPS in its recent quarterly earnings, surpassing estimates, with revenues of $524.20 million, representing a 5% year-over-year increase.

Amundi lowered its stake in shares of Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR - Free Report) by 39.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 157,901 shares of the company's stock after selling 101,267 shares during the quarter. Amundi owned about 0.10% of Laureate Education worth $3,204,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Laureate Education by 2.8% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 23,513 shares of the company's stock valued at $481,000 after acquiring an additional 631 shares in the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Laureate Education by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 52,706 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,078,000 after purchasing an additional 768 shares in the last quarter. Cannon Global Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Laureate Education by 4.2% in the 1st quarter. Cannon Global Investment Management LLC now owns 19,800 shares of the company's stock valued at $405,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Laureate Education by 4.7% in the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 22,290 shares of the company's stock valued at $456,000 after buying an additional 998 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS boosted its stake in shares of Laureate Education by 2.5% in the first quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 52,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,074,000 after buying an additional 1,300 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.27% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded Laureate Education from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $24.00.

Laureate Education Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LAUR traded up $0.11 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $29.72. 789,324 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 781,995. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $25.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $22.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The company has a market cap of $4.38 billion, a PE ratio of 17.48 and a beta of 0.58. Laureate Education has a 12-month low of $15.15 and a 12-month high of $30.04.

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $524.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $502.00 million. Laureate Education had a return on equity of 29.46% and a net margin of 16.41%.During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.65 earnings per share. Laureate Education's quarterly revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Laureate Education has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Laureate Education will post 1.51 EPS for the current year.

Laureate Education Profile

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.