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

Stride, Inc. (NYSE:LRN)’s share price gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $120.64, but opened at $127.34. Stride shares last traded at $131.71, with a volume of 391,397 shares trading hands.

The company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.92 by $0.11. Stride had a return on equity of 21.23% and a net margin of 11.38%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on LRN. StockNews.com downgraded Stride from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Citigroup upped their target price on Stride from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Barrington Research lifted their price objective on shares of Stride from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Stride from $122.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Stride from $94.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $116.83.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stride

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Stride by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 20,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,151,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Stride by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 3,232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $336,000 after buying an additional 113 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in Stride by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 3,213 shares of the company’s stock worth $274,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management lifted its stake in Stride by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 3,070 shares of the company’s stock valued at $319,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Stride by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 11,672 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,213,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.24% of the company’s stock.

Stride Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 5.50 and a current ratio of 5.60. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $109.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $91.84. The company has a market cap of $5.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.36, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.32.

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.