Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Purchases New Holdings in Laureate Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LAUR)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Laureate Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LAUR - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 140,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,573,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.09% of Laureate Education at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. J.Safra Asset Management Corp raised its holdings in shares of Laureate Education by 34.4% during the 4th quarter. J.Safra Asset Management Corp now owns 3,386 shares of the company's stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 866 shares during the period. KBC Group NV grew its position in shares of Laureate Education by 48.4% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,049 shares of the company's stock valued at $111,000 after purchasing an additional 1,974 shares during the period. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust increased its stake in Laureate Education by 10.7% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 6,976 shares of the company's stock worth $128,000 after acquiring an additional 673 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Laureate Education during the 4th quarter worth $216,000. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Laureate Education by 112.8% during the fourth quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 12,180 shares of the company's stock worth $223,000 after purchasing an additional 6,455 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.27% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Laureate Education from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Ian Kendell Snow sold 520,831 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.47, for a total transaction of $9,098,917.57. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Laureate Education Trading Down 0.5%

Laureate Education stock traded down $0.11 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $22.95. 39,429 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 743,913. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $20.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $19.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.42 billion, a PE ratio of 11.86 and a beta of 0.59. Laureate Education, Inc. has a 52 week low of $13.60 and a 52 week high of $23.61.

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.20. Laureate Education had a net margin of 18.92% and a return on equity of 32.35%. The business had revenue of $423.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $411.50 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Laureate Education, Inc. will post 1.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Laureate Education Company 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.