Stride (NYSE:LRN) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Shares of Stride, Inc. (NYSE:LRN) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $98.16 and last traded at $97.44, with a volume of 3483 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $94.77.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on LRN. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Stride from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com cut Stride from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Barrington Research upped their price objective on shares of Stride from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Canaccord Genuity Group assumed coverage on Stride in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on Stride from $94.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $90.17.

Stride Trading Up 4.1 %

The firm has a market cap of $4.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a current ratio of 5.60, a quick ratio of 5.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $81.32 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $74.90.

Stride (NYSE:LRN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.72. The firm had revenue of $551.08 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $504.29 million. Stride had a return on equity of 21.23% and a net margin of 11.38%. The business’s revenue was up 14.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.11 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Stride, Inc. will post 6.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Stride news, Director Todd Goldthwaite sold 8,028 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.54, for a total value of $734,883.12. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 85,058 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,786,209.32. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Stride

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Stride by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 3,213 shares of the company’s stock valued at $274,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Stride by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 20,454 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,442,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in shares of Stride by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 11,536 shares of the company’s stock valued at $813,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Stride by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 4,814 shares of the company’s stock valued at $339,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the period. Finally, Amalgamated Bank boosted its position in shares of Stride by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 12,528 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,069,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. 98.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.