Perdoceo Education (NASDAQ:PRDO) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Perdoceo Education Co. (NASDAQ:PRDO)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $32.08 and last traded at $32.03, with a volume of 452543 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $31.03.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on PRDO shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Perdoceo Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Barrington Research boosted their target price on shares of Perdoceo Education from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd.

Perdoceo Education Stock Up 3.2%

The firm has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a PE ratio of 14.56, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.79. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $27.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $26.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 4.84 and a quick ratio of 5.45.

Perdoceo Education (NASDAQ:PRDO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $213.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $207.97 million. Perdoceo Education had a net margin of 21.66% and a return on equity of 16.85%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 26.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.60 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Perdoceo Education Co. will post 2.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Perdoceo Education Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Sunday, June 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. Perdoceo Education’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.01%.

Insider Activity at Perdoceo Education

In other Perdoceo Education news, SVP Elise Baskel sold 17,818 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.16, for a total value of $430,482.88. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 93,354 shares in the company, valued at $2,255,432.64. The trade was a 16.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Michele A. Peppers sold 4,038 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total transaction of $129,216.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 45,876 shares in the company, valued at $1,468,032. The trade was a 8.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 127,820 shares of company stock valued at $3,296,615. Corporate insiders own 2.11% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Perdoceo Education

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. IFP Advisors Inc acquired a new position in Perdoceo Education in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Perdoceo Education by 227.1% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,315 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 913 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Perdoceo Education by 223.6% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,793 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,239 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Perdoceo Education in the 4th quarter worth approximately $60,000. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Perdoceo Education by 47.5% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,696 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,000 after acquiring an additional 1,190 shares during the last quarter. 93.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.