Perdoceo Education (NASDAQ:PRDO) Sets New 1-Year High After Earnings Beat

Perdoceo Education Co. (NASDAQ:PRDO) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as high as $21.73 and last traded at $21.55, with a volume of 118220 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.34.

The company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.07. Perdoceo Education had a net margin of 22.35% and a return on equity of 17.33%. The company had revenue of $168.30 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $163.30 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.58 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Perdoceo Education Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, June 1st will be paid a $0.11 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 31st. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.81%. Perdoceo Education’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PRDO has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barrington Research lifted their target price on Perdoceo Education from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com cut Perdoceo Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Ashish R. Ghia sold 11,412 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.00, for a total transaction of $216,828.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 226,234 shares in the company, valued at $4,298,446. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Todd S. Nelson sold 16,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.23, for a total value of $275,680.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 713,367 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,291,313.41. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Ashish R. Ghia sold 11,412 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.00, for a total value of $216,828.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 226,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,298,446. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 75,412 shares of company stock worth $1,342,428 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.81% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Perdoceo Education

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Perdoceo Education during the 3rd quarter worth $843,000. Raymond James & Associates grew its stake in shares of Perdoceo Education by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 17,757 shares of the company’s stock valued at $304,000 after purchasing an additional 804 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Perdoceo Education by 5.3% in the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 80,078 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,369,000 after purchasing an additional 4,038 shares during the period. Panagora Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Perdoceo Education during the third quarter worth $879,000. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its position in Perdoceo Education by 65.7% in the 3rd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 104,363 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,785,000 after buying an additional 41,396 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.46% of the company’s stock.

Perdoceo Education Trading Up 1.0 %

The company has a market capitalization of $1.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.66, a PEG ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 0.93. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $17.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $17.70.

About Perdoceo Education

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.