Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) Stock Breaks Below Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Here’s What Happened

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR)’s stock price crossed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $35.60 and traded as low as $33.15. Laureate Education shares last traded at $33.22, with a volume of 3,219,937 shares traded.

Laureate Education News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Laureate Education this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter revenue rose 21% year over year to $485.1 million, topping the $480.2 million consensus estimate. Adjusted EPS increased to $0.52 from $0.25 a year earlier and exceeded expectations of $0.48. Laureate Education Q3 earnings and revenues top estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Profitability improved substantially: net income reached $101.2 million versus $34.4 million in the prior-year quarter, operating income rose to $119.1 million, and adjusted EBITDA increased to $146.8 million from $94.8 million. New enrollments grew 9%, while total enrollment increased 6%. Laureate Education third-quarter financial results
• Positive Sentiment: Laureate added $150 million to its share-repurchase authorization, leaving approximately $225.2 million available for buybacks. Repurchases could support per-share earnings and signal management’s confidence in the company’s valuation. Laureate adds $150 million to buyback authorization
• Neutral Sentiment: Management reaffirmed its 2026 revenue outlook of $1.92 billion to $1.93 billion and its full-year earnings guidance rather than raising expectations. This suggests execution remains on track, but may provide limited fresh upside after the earnings beat. Laureate reaffirms fiscal 2026 outlook
• Negative Sentiment: The negative investor response likely reflects high expectations already embedded in LAUR’s valuation and the lack of an increased outlook. The stock had also been trading well above its 200-day moving average before the results, increasing the potential for profit-taking despite the strong quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Laureate Education from $34.50 to $36.50 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Weiss Ratings cut Laureate Education from a “buy (a)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a report on Friday. Barrington Research started coverage on Laureate Education in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $45.00 target price for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Laureate Education from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $41.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, August 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $40.90.

Laureate Education Price Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average of $37.58 and a 200-day moving average of $35.60. The firm has a market cap of $4.58 billion, a PE ratio of 12.17, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.04. Laureate Education had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 26.41%. The business had revenue of $485.09 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $480.16 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.23 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Laureate Education will post 2.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Laureate Education news, Director Ian Snow sold 427,019 shares of Laureate Education stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.26, for a total transaction of $15,483,708.94. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,646,324 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $59,695,708.24. The trade was a 20.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Over the last three months, insiders sold 521,229 shares of company stock valued at $19,103,350. 1.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Laureate Education

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Laureate Education by 33.4% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 281 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Laureate Education by 26.1% in the third quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 1,807 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 374 shares during the last quarter. Entropy Technologies LP boosted its holdings in Laureate Education by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 25,418 shares of the company’s stock valued at $886,000 after purchasing an additional 576 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Laureate Education by 116.2% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,213 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 652 shares during the period. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of Laureate Education by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 15,804 shares of the company’s stock worth $551,000 after purchasing an additional 761 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.27% of the company’s stock.

About Laureate Education

Laureate Education, Inc is a higher education company that operates a network of universities and other learning institutions. Its institutions provide undergraduate and graduate degree programs, professional education, and online and hybrid learning options across fields such as business, health sciences, engineering, technology, and the social sciences.

The company currently serves students primarily in Mexico and Peru. Its Mexican institutions include Universidad del Valle de México (UVM) and Universidad Tecnológica de México (UNITEC), while its Peruvian institutions include Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas (UPC) and Universidad Privada del Norte (UPN).