Perdoceo Education (NASDAQ:PRDO) Hits New 12-Month High - What's Next?

Shares of Perdoceo Education Co. (NASDAQ:PRDO - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The company traded as high as $34.24 and last traded at $33.61, with a volume of 782294 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.95.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Perdoceo Education from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Barrington Research raised their price objective on shares of Perdoceo Education from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd.

Perdoceo Education Trading Down 1.0%

The company has a quick ratio of 5.45, a current ratio of 4.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $28.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $27.24. The company has a market cap of $2.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.35, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.79.

Perdoceo Education (NASDAQ:PRDO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.04. Perdoceo Education had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 16.85%. The company had revenue of $213.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $207.97 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.60 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 26.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Perdoceo Education Co. will post 2.41 EPS for the current year.

Perdoceo Education Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, June 1st will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.54%. Perdoceo Education's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.01%.

Insider Transactions at Perdoceo Education

In other news, CEO Todd S. Nelson sold 38,984 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.66, for a total transaction of $961,345.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 644,047 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,882,199.02. This trade represents a 5.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Elise Baskel sold 17,818 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.16, for a total transaction of $430,482.88. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 93,354 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,255,432.64. This trade represents a 16.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 147,116 shares of company stock worth $3,895,709. Insiders own 2.11% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Perdoceo Education

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PRDO. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Perdoceo Education in the 4th quarter valued at $47,129,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in Perdoceo Education in the 1st quarter valued at $18,758,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in Perdoceo Education by 49.7% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,547,405 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,964,000 after buying an additional 513,599 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Perdoceo Education in the 1st quarter valued at $11,022,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its position in Perdoceo Education by 48.9% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,297,465 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,670,000 after buying an additional 425,893 shares during the last quarter. 93.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Perdoceo Education Company Profile

Perdoceo Education Corporation provides postsecondary education through online, campus-based, and blended learning programs in the United States. It operates in two segments, Colorado Technical University and The American InterContinental University System. The Colorado Technical University segment offers academic programs, such as business and management, nursing, healthcare management, computer science, engineering, information systems and technology, project management, cybersecurity, and criminal justice.