Vest Financial LLC Buys 26,142 Shares of Perdoceo Education Co. (NASDAQ:PRDO)

Vest Financial LLC increased its position in Perdoceo Education Co. (NASDAQ:PRDO - Free Report) by 39.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 92,870 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 26,142 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC owned about 0.14% of Perdoceo Education worth $2,458,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Perdoceo Education by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,803,391 shares of the company's stock worth $40,114,000 after acquiring an additional 33,092 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of Perdoceo Education by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 582,180 shares of the company's stock worth $12,948,000 after purchasing an additional 16,720 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of Perdoceo Education by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 485,552 shares of the company's stock worth $10,799,000 after purchasing an additional 5,571 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in shares of Perdoceo Education during the 3rd quarter worth about $9,374,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Perdoceo Education by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 278,091 shares of the company's stock worth $5,954,000 after purchasing an additional 24,434 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.46% of the company's stock.

Perdoceo Education Stock Down 0.7 %

NASDAQ:PRDO traded down $0.20 on Wednesday, reaching $28.19. The stock had a trading volume of 251,239 shares, compared to its average volume of 374,159. Perdoceo Education Co. has a 1-year low of $16.12 and a 1-year high of $29.47. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $27.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $24.57. The company has a market capitalization of $1.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.07.

Perdoceo Education (NASDAQ:PRDO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 12th. The company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.06. Perdoceo Education had a net margin of 20.42% and a return on equity of 15.58%. The business had revenue of $169.83 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $164.60 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.64 earnings per share. Perdoceo Education's revenue was down 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Perdoceo Education Co. will post 2.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Perdoceo Education Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, March 1st will be paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. Perdoceo Education's payout ratio is presently 26.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on PRDO. StockNews.com raised shares of Perdoceo Education from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Barrington Research reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $32.00 target price on shares of Perdoceo Education in a research note on Friday, February 7th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Perdoceo Education

In other Perdoceo Education news, CEO Todd S. Nelson sold 12,472 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.29, for a total value of $327,888.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 615,697 shares in the company, valued at $16,186,674.13. This trade represents a 1.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP John Robert Kline sold 30,574 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.47, for a total transaction of $809,293.78. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 130,405 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,451,820.35. This represents a 18.99 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 58,594 shares of company stock valued at $1,541,396. Corporate insiders own 1.81% of the company's stock.

Perdoceo Education Profile

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.