Stride (NYSE:LRN) Shares Gap Up After Earnings Beat

Stride, Inc. (NYSE:LRN) shares gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $64.49, but opened at $84.53. Stride shares last traded at $83.69, with a volume of 1,674,063 shares.

The company reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.72. Stride had a return on equity of 19.12% and a net margin of 10.01%. The company had revenue of $551.08 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $504.29 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.11 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 14.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on LRN shares. StockNews.com cut Stride from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Stride from $79.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Barrington Research increased their price target on Stride from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Canaccord Genuity Group started coverage on Stride in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on Stride from $94.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Stride has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $88.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Stride by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 20,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,757,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Stride by 8,431.7% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,119 shares of the company’s stock worth $437,000 after purchasing an additional 5,059 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Stride during the 3rd quarter worth $210,000. Retirement Guys Formula LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Stride during the 3rd quarter worth $203,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of Stride by 634.9% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 117,913 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,059,000 after purchasing an additional 101,869 shares in the last quarter. 98.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Stride Trading Up 39.1 %

The company has a market capitalization of $3.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 4.95 and a current ratio of 5.10. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $79.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.66.

Stride Company Profile

Stride, Inc, a technology-based education service company, engages in the provision of proprietary and third-party online curriculum, software systems, and educational services in the United States and internationally. Its technology-based products and services enable clients to attract, enroll, educate, track progress, support, and facilitate individualized learning for students.