Stride, Inc. $LRN Stock: William Blair Investment Management LLC Reduces Position

William Blair Investment Management LLC lowered its position in Stride, Inc. (NYSE:LRN) by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 807,907 shares of the company’s stock after selling 15,791 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC owned about 1.92% of Stride worth $63,001,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Stride by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,716 shares of the company’s stock worth $407,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. BDFS Capital LLC increased its holdings in Stride by 1.4% during the second quarter. BDFS Capital LLC now owns 12,436 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,072,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Cim LLC increased its holdings in Stride by 4.0% during the first quarter. Cim LLC now owns 4,706 shares of the company’s stock valued at $415,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Stride by 108.7% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 432 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in Stride by 14.5% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,533 shares of the company’s stock worth $198,000 after acquiring an additional 321 shares during the period. 98.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Stride Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LRN traded up $0.42 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $75.71. The stock had a trading volume of 630,095 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,112,252. The company has a market capitalization of $3.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.42 and a beta of 0.16. Stride, Inc. has a 12-month low of $60.61 and a 12-month high of $103.67. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $79.55 and a 200-day moving average of $86.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 2.53 and a current ratio of 2.56.

Stride (NYSE:LRN) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 20th. The company reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.30. Stride had a net margin of 13.18% and a return on equity of 22.06%. The company had revenue of $639.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $612.25 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.40 EPS. Stride’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Stride, Inc. will post 9.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Stride news, Director Brian A. Shepherd bought 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $76.69 per share, for a total transaction of $920,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 13,094 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,004,178.86. This trade represents a 1,096.89% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Dylan G. Haggart bought 137,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $77.12 per share, for a total transaction of $10,604,000.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 2,091,403 shares in the company, valued at $161,288,999.36. This trade represents a 7.04% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders bought 513,318 shares of company stock worth $39,585,565 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 4.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on LRN shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Stride from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 7th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Stride from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 16th. Barrington Research lowered their target price on Stride from $125.00 to $115.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Stride from $93.00 to $90.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, William Blair cut Stride from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Stride currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $106.25.

Stride Company Profile

Stride, Inc. is an education technology company that provides online and blended learning programs, curriculum, and related services. Its offerings support students from kindergarten through high school, as well as learners pursuing career-focused education. The company works with public school districts and other education partners to deliver virtual and hybrid instruction. Its programs include online courses, teacher-led instruction, and career learning pathways designed to help students build skills for further education and employment.