Stride (NYSE:LRN) Hits New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Stride, Inc. (NYSE:LRN) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $115.42 and last traded at $114.82, with a volume of 218361 shares. The stock had previously closed at $111.36.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on LRN shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Stride from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Stride from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barrington Research raised their target price on Stride from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Citigroup lifted their target price on Stride from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Stride from $94.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.50.

Stride Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $106.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $88.52. The firm has a market cap of $4.96 billion, a PE ratio of 20.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a current ratio of 5.60, a quick ratio of 5.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Stride (NYSE:LRN) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.22 by $0.72. Stride had a return on equity of 21.23% and a net margin of 11.38%. The firm had revenue of $551.08 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $504.29 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.11 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Stride, Inc. will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Todd Goldthwaite sold 8,028 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.54, for a total transaction of $734,883.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 85,058 shares in the company, valued at $7,786,209.32. This trade represents a 8.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stride

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LRN. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Stride during the second quarter worth approximately $534,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Stride during the 3rd quarter valued at $430,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Stride by 8,431.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 5,119 shares of the company’s stock worth $437,000 after purchasing an additional 5,059 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Stride by 20,248.8% during the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 8,343 shares of the company’s stock valued at $712,000 after buying an additional 8,302 shares during the period. Finally, Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its stake in shares of Stride by 24.6% during the third quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 36,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,071,000 after buying an additional 7,100 shares during the last quarter. 98.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Stride

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.