Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seven brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $40.50.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on LAUR. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Laureate Education from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Morgan Stanley cut Laureate Education from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $34.50 price target on the stock. in a report on Monday, July 27th. Barrington Research assumed coverage on Laureate Education in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $45.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $41.00 target price on shares of Laureate Education in a research report on Monday, August 3rd.

Laureate Education Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:LAUR opened at $35.98 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $37.76 and a 200 day moving average of $35.22. The company has a market cap of $4.96 billion, a PE ratio of 16.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.38. Laureate Education has a 12-month low of $24.98 and a 12-month high of $40.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.00 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $615.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $607.56 million. Laureate Education had a net margin of 17.57% and a return on equity of 23.54%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.79 earnings per share. Laureate Education has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.040-2.100 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Laureate Education will post 2.12 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Laureate Education news, Director Ian Snow sold 427,019 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.26, for a total transaction of $15,483,708.94. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,646,324 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $59,695,708.24. This trade represents a 20.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 521,229 shares of company stock valued at $19,103,350. Corporate insiders own 1.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Laureate Education

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Laureate Education in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of Laureate Education by 109.0% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,097 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 572 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Laureate Education by 328.6% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,650 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 1,265 shares during the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in Laureate Education during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Finally, Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Laureate Education during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $100,000. Institutional investors own 96.27% of the company’s stock.

About Laureate Education

Laureate Education, Inc (NASDAQ: LAUR) is a leading global network of higher education institutions dedicated to providing undergraduate, graduate and certificate programs to a diverse student body. The company designs and delivers academic offerings through a combination of campus-based and online platforms, focusing on fields such as business, health sciences, engineering, education and hospitality management. By aligning its curriculum with regional workforce needs, Laureate aims to equip students with practical skills and industry insights that support career advancement and lifelong learning.

Through its network, Laureate operates a broad portfolio of universities and colleges, including both longstanding campus institutions and digitally native programs.