Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Laureate Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LAUR)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Thursday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $14.59, but opened at $13.52. Laureate Education shares last traded at $14.10, with a volume of 270,865 shares trading hands.

The company reported ($0.07) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.12). The firm had revenue of $275.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $269.35 million. Laureate Education had a return on equity of 13.87% and a net margin of 8.19%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.17) EPS.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, TheStreet upgraded Laureate Education from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Laureate Education by 28.9% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,143,474 shares of the company’s stock worth $100,723,000 after purchasing an additional 1,599,817 shares during the last quarter. Fourth Sail Capital LP raised its stake in Laureate Education by 109.3% during the first quarter. Fourth Sail Capital LP now owns 2,122,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,919,000 after buying an additional 1,108,142 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in Laureate Education by 25.6% during the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 5,124,756 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,288,000 after buying an additional 1,045,373 shares during the last quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. grew its position in shares of Laureate Education by 8.1% in the 3rd quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. now owns 7,125,871 shares of the company’s stock worth $100,475,000 after acquiring an additional 531,670 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in shares of Laureate Education by 1,013.4% in the 3rd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 558,947 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,875,000 after acquiring an additional 508,745 shares during the last quarter. 96.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Laureate Education Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $14.11 and a 200-day moving average of $13.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.24 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

About Laureate Education

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.