Laureate Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LAUR) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Laureate Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LAUR - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 4,890,000 shares, a decrease of 14.4% from the September 15th total of 5,710,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 758,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 6.4 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Morgan Stanley cut Laureate Education from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $17.00 price target for the company. in a report on Friday, July 26th.

Laureate Education Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ LAUR traded down $0.07 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $15.29. 253,281 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 742,316. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.66 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.76. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.15. Laureate Education has a twelve month low of $12.45 and a twelve month high of $17.60.

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $499.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $483.69 million. Laureate Education had a return on equity of 21.37% and a net margin of 12.64%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.35 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Laureate Education will post 1.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Laureate Education

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fourth Sail Capital LP lifted its holdings in Laureate Education by 109.3% during the 1st quarter. Fourth Sail Capital LP now owns 2,122,092 shares of the company's stock worth $30,919,000 after buying an additional 1,108,142 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in Laureate Education during the 1st quarter worth about $11,241,000. First Pacific Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Laureate Education by 32.5% in the 1st quarter. First Pacific Advisors LP now owns 813,781 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,857,000 after buying an additional 199,423 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Laureate Education by 218.5% during the second quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 268,412 shares of the company's stock worth $4,010,000 after buying an additional 184,139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van Berkom & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in Laureate Education by 2.2% in the second quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. now owns 6,951,804 shares of the company's stock valued at $103,860,000 after acquiring an additional 151,397 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.27% of the company's stock.

Laureate Education Company Profile

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.

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