Royal Bank Of Canada Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Coursera (NYSE:COUR) Stock Price

Coursera (NYSE:COUR) had its price objective lowered by equities research analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada from $7.00 to $5.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada‘s price objective suggests a potential upside of 32.80% from the company’s current price.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on COUR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Coursera from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $8.00 to $5.00 in a report on Friday. Telsey Advisory Group set a $7.00 price objective on Coursera in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Coursera from a “sell (d-)” rating to a “sell (e+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on shares of Coursera from $10.00 to $6.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Coursera from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, September 19th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Coursera currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $6.70.

Coursera Stock Down 19.2%

Shares of COUR stock traded down $0.90 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $3.77. 8,285,664 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,013,701. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $5.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $5.71. Coursera has a 12-month low of $3.68 and a 12-month high of $8.89. The stock has a market cap of $995.47 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.63, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.24.

Coursera (NYSE:COUR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $0.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.03. Coursera had a negative return on equity of 1.72% and a negative net margin of 15.39%. The company had revenue of $376.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $368.52 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.10 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 94.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Coursera will post 0.20 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Coursera

In related news, SVP Alan Cardenas sold 9,139 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.71, for a total value of $52,183.69. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 236,237 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,348,913.27. This trade represents a 3.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Gregory Hart sold 10,308 shares of Coursera stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.11, for a total transaction of $52,673.88. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,539,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,864,305.33. This represents a 0.67% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 16.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coursera

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Coursera by 440.6% during the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 28,220 shares of the company’s stock valued at $140,000 after buying an additional 23,000 shares during the last quarter. Total Clarity Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Coursera in the 3rd quarter worth about $178,000. Inspire Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Coursera by 5.1% during the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 126,131 shares of the company’s stock worth $626,000 after purchasing an additional 6,099 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Coursera by 28.4% in the third quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 15,532 shares of the company’s stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 3,435 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Coursera in the third quarter valued at approximately $551,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.55% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Coursera

Here are the key news stories impacting Coursera this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Coursera reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of $0.21 per share, above analyst expectations of approximately $0.18-$0.19, while revenue of $376.7 million also exceeded consensus estimates. Earnings increased from $0.10 per share in the year-ago quarter, and revenue rose 94% year over year. Coursera Q3 Earnings and Revenues Beat Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Management expects more than $150 million in gross cost savings by year-end as integration progresses, supporting the outlook for margin expansion and potential profitability improvements. Coursera Cost Savings and Revenue Outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually heavy call-option activity suggests some traders are positioning for a potential rebound, with call volume reported at roughly 3.5 times its average level. This is a market signal rather than a fundamental change.
• Neutral Sentiment: Coursera forecast fourth-quarter revenue of $358 million to $366 million. The guidance provides visibility into near-term performance, but the range implies a sequential decline from third-quarter revenue and appears to have disappointed investors. Coursera Q3 Results and Guidance
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan downgraded COUR from “overweight” to “neutral” and cut its price target from $8 to $5. Although the new target remains above the recent share price, the downgrade reduces a notable source of analyst support. JPMorgan Coursera Rating
• Negative Sentiment: Investors appear more focused on the softer fourth-quarter outlook and Coursera’s continuing negative net margin than on the quarterly earnings beat, contributing to pressure on the stock.

About Coursera

Coursera, Inc is an online learning platform that provides access to courses, professional certificates, guided projects, and degree programs. The company works with universities, colleges, and industry partners to offer content in areas such as business, technology, data science, computer science, and personal development.

Coursera serves individual learners, businesses, governments, and academic institutions in countries around the world. Its enterprise and government offerings support employee training, workforce development, and large-scale education initiatives, while its consumer platform allows learners to enroll in individual courses or broader credential and degree programs.

Coursera was founded in 2012 by computer-science professors Andrew Ng and Daphne Koller.