Vest Financial LLC Raises Stake in Perdoceo Education Co. (NASDAQ:PRDO)

Vest Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Perdoceo Education Co. (NASDAQ:PRDO) by 12.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 52,751 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,716 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC owned about 0.08% of Perdoceo Education worth $1,130,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Perdoceo Education by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,896,257 shares of the company’s stock worth $103,538,000 after acquiring an additional 45,259 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Perdoceo Education in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,570,000. LSV Asset Management boosted its holdings in Perdoceo Education by 59.4% in the 1st quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,934,961 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,978,000 after acquiring an additional 721,122 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Perdoceo Education in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $954,000. Finally, Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC purchased a new position in Perdoceo Education in the 4th quarter worth approximately $922,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.46% of the company’s stock.

Perdoceo Education Stock Up 2.4 %

Shares of PRDO opened at $21.71 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $22.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.90. Perdoceo Education Co. has a 52-week low of $16.12 and a 52-week high of $26.40. The firm has a market cap of $1.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.56, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.03.

Perdoceo Education (NASDAQ:PRDO) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.02. Perdoceo Education had a return on equity of 16.42% and a net margin of 20.57%. The company had revenue of $166.74 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $160.91 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.61 EPS. Perdoceo Education’s quarterly revenue was down 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Perdoceo Education Co. will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Perdoceo Education Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 13th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, September 1st will be given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.40%. This is a positive change from Perdoceo Education’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. Perdoceo Education’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $30.00 price target on shares of Perdoceo Education in a report on Wednesday, August 21st.

Insider Buying and Selling at Perdoceo Education

In related news, insider Michele A. Peppers sold 6,476 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.00, for a total transaction of $135,996.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 61,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,300,992. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Michele A. Peppers sold 6,476 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.00, for a total transaction of $135,996.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 61,952 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,300,992. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director William Dean Hansen sold 13,185 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.01, for a total value of $303,386.85. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 39,016 shares in the company, valued at $897,758.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 46,325 shares of company stock valued at $1,044,656 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.81% of the company’s stock.

Perdoceo Education Company Profile

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.