Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Takes $4.94 Million Position in Perdoceo Education Corporation $PRDO

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group opened a new position in Perdoceo Education, buying 168,298 shares valued at about $4.94 million, according to its latest 13F filing.
• Institutional interest remains high, with 93.46% of Perdoceo shares held by institutional investors and hedge funds, even as several insiders recently sold stock.
• Perdoceo reported better-than-expected quarterly results with EPS of $0.90 versus $0.84 expected, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share, yielding about 1.8%.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Perdoceo Education Corporation (NASDAQ:PRDO - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 168,298 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,936,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.26% of Perdoceo Education as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in PRDO. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in Perdoceo Education in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its holdings in Perdoceo Education by 72.6% in the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 811 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in Perdoceo Education by 108.2% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 970 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 504 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in Perdoceo Education by 34.6% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,363 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC boosted its holdings in Perdoceo Education by 60.9% in the third quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 2,401 shares of the company's stock valued at $90,000 after acquiring an additional 909 shares during the last quarter. 93.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Perdoceo Education

In other news, insider Michele A. Peppers sold 14,000 shares of Perdoceo Education stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.50, for a total transaction of $483,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 35,748 shares in the company, valued at $1,233,306. The trade was a 28.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Todd S. Nelson sold 40,000 shares of Perdoceo Education stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.24, for a total value of $1,409,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 392,368 shares in the company, valued at $13,827,048.32. This trade represents a 9.25% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 235,438 shares of company stock worth $8,286,247 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.46% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PRDO has been the topic of several recent research reports. Zacks Research cut Perdoceo Education from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Barrington Research set a $44.00 price target on Perdoceo Education in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Perdoceo Education in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $44.00.

Perdoceo Education Price Performance

NASDAQ:PRDO opened at $33.98 on Tuesday. Perdoceo Education Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $26.66 and a fifty-two week high of $38.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.13 billion, a PE ratio of 13.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.73. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $35.36 and its 200-day simple moving average is $32.45.

Perdoceo Education (NASDAQ:PRDO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.06. Perdoceo Education had a return on equity of 18.51% and a net margin of 19.91%.The business had revenue of $221.74 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $218.40 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.70 EPS. Perdoceo Education's revenue for the quarter was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. Perdoceo Education has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.050-3.160 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.790-0.800 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Perdoceo Education Corporation will post 3.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Perdoceo Education Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.15 per share. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 1st. Perdoceo Education's payout ratio is 22.99%.

Perdoceo Education Profile

Perdoceo Education Corporation NASDAQ: PRDO is a for-profit postsecondary education provider offering certificate, associate, bachelor's and master's degree programs. The company operates primarily through two brand platforms—Colorado Technical University and American InterContinental University—delivering career-focused education both on campus and online. These programs span fields such as business, information technology, healthcare and criminal justice, targeting working adults seeking to advance or pivot their careers.

With headquarters in Schaumburg, Illinois, Perdoceo serves students across the United States and internationally through its online offerings.

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