20,876 Shares in Laureate Education $LAUR Purchased by Aviva PLC

Aviva PLC bought a new stake in Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 20,876 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $488,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. CWM LLC boosted its stake in Laureate Education by 260.1% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,901 shares of the company’s stock worth $100,000 after buying an additional 3,540 shares during the last quarter. Avanza Fonder AB boosted its position in shares of Laureate Education by 54.8% in the second quarter. Avanza Fonder AB now owns 6,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $161,000 after acquiring an additional 2,443 shares during the last quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. purchased a new stake in Laureate Education in the second quarter valued at approximately $178,000. Xponance Inc. acquired a new position in Laureate Education during the first quarter worth approximately $201,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Laureate Education by 3.7% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 13,598 shares of the company’s stock worth $318,000 after purchasing an additional 480 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.27% of the company’s stock.

Laureate Education Stock Performance

Laureate Education stock opened at $30.44 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.49 billion, a PE ratio of 22.22 and a beta of 0.61. Laureate Education has a one year low of $17.82 and a one year high of $32.42. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $29.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $25.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81.

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by ($0.10). Laureate Education had a net margin of 12.86% and a return on equity of 22.99%. The firm had revenue of $400.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $391.77 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.56 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Laureate Education has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Laureate Education will post 1.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Laureate Education announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, October 30th that allows the company to buyback $150.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 3.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on LAUR. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Laureate Education in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Laureate Education from $26.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. UBS Group upped their price target on Laureate Education from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Laureate Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, September 20th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Laureate Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $30.67.

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.