Perdoceo Education (NASDAQ:PRDO) Trading Down 8.4% – Time to Sell?

Perdoceo Education Corporation (NASDAQ:PRDO)’s stock price fell 8.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $32.91 and last traded at $33.2650. 444,181 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 27% from the average daily volume of 611,201 shares. The stock had previously closed at $36.32.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on PRDO shares. Barrington Research set a $44.00 price objective on Perdoceo Education in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Perdoceo Education in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Zacks Research lowered Perdoceo Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.00.

Perdoceo Education Stock Down 7.6%

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $33.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $33.60. The stock has a market cap of $2.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.84, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.70.

Perdoceo Education (NASDAQ:PRDO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $221.74 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $218.40 million. Perdoceo Education had a net margin of 19.91% and a return on equity of 18.51%. Perdoceo Education’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.70 earnings per share. Perdoceo Education has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.050-3.160 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.790-0.800 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Perdoceo Education Corporation will post 3.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Perdoceo Education Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 1st were given a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. Perdoceo Education’s payout ratio is 22.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Julia A. Leeman sold 11,315 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.51, for a total transaction of $401,795.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 21,924 shares in the company, valued at $778,521.24. This trade represents a 34.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Patrick W. Gross sold 3,647 shares of Perdoceo Education stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.98, for a total value of $127,572.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 114,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,021,650.60. This represents a 3.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 38,270 shares of company stock worth $1,336,193. Corporate insiders own 1.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PRDO. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in Perdoceo Education by 19.2% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 10,663 shares of the company’s stock worth $269,000 after buying an additional 1,717 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in Perdoceo Education by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 56,278 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,417,000 after acquiring an additional 1,235 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in Perdoceo Education by 49.7% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,547,405 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,964,000 after acquiring an additional 513,599 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in shares of Perdoceo Education by 117.5% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 267,312 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,731,000 after acquiring an additional 144,395 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of Perdoceo Education by 192.2% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 80,212 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,622,000 after acquiring an additional 52,762 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.46% of the company’s stock.

Perdoceo Education Company Profile

Perdoceo Education Corporation (NASDAQ: PRDO) is a for-profit postsecondary education provider offering certificate, associate, bachelor’s and master’s degree programs. The company operates primarily through two brand platforms—Colorado Technical University and American InterContinental University—delivering career-focused education both on campus and online. These programs span fields such as business, information technology, healthcare and criminal justice, targeting working adults seeking to advance or pivot their careers.

With headquarters in Schaumburg, Illinois, Perdoceo serves students across the United States and internationally through its online offerings.