Perdoceo Education (NASDAQ:PRDO) Hits New 52-Week High Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Perdoceo Education Co. (NASDAQ:PRDO)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $29.33 and last traded at $29.17, with a volume of 77927 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $24.87.

The company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $169.83 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $164.60 million. Perdoceo Education had a net margin of 20.42% and a return on equity of 15.88%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.64 earnings per share.

Perdoceo Education Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. Perdoceo Education’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.13%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barrington Research boosted their price objective on shares of Perdoceo Education from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Perdoceo Education from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday.

Insider Activity at Perdoceo Education

In other Perdoceo Education news, insider Michele A. Peppers sold 6,476 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.00, for a total transaction of $135,996.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 61,952 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,300,992. This represents a 9.46 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.81% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Perdoceo Education

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Perdoceo Education by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,896,257 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,538,000 after acquiring an additional 45,259 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Perdoceo Education in the 2nd quarter worth about $2,570,000. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Perdoceo Education during the second quarter valued at approximately $954,000. Boston Partners grew its stake in Perdoceo Education by 979.2% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 750,979 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,376,000 after buying an additional 681,391 shares during the period. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System increased its position in shares of Perdoceo Education by 69.5% in the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 150,557 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,644,000 after acquiring an additional 61,734 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.46% of the company’s stock.

Perdoceo Education Trading Down 5.9 %

The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $22.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $22.33. The firm has a market cap of $1.73 billion, a PE ratio of 13.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.04.

About Perdoceo Education

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.