Insider Selling: Perdoceo Education Co. (NASDAQ:PRDO) CFO Sells $921,536.91 in Stock

Perdoceo Education Co. (NASDAQ:PRDO) CFO Ashish R. Ghia sold 35,677 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.83, for a total transaction of $921,536.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 204,477 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,281,640.91. This represents a 14.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Perdoceo Education Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PRDO opened at $25.49 on Friday. Perdoceo Education Co. has a 52 week low of $16.56 and a 52 week high of $29.84. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $26.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $25.41. The company has a quick ratio of 5.45, a current ratio of 4.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company has a market cap of $1.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.87.

Perdoceo Education (NASDAQ:PRDO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.02. Perdoceo Education had a return on equity of 16.85% and a net margin of 21.66%. The company had revenue of $176.43 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $160.12 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Perdoceo Education Co. will post 2.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Perdoceo Education Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 13th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Perdoceo Education’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on PRDO shares. Barrington Research raised their price target on Perdoceo Education from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com raised shares of Perdoceo Education from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Perdoceo Education

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PRDO. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Perdoceo Education by 227.1% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,315 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 913 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,239 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Perdoceo Education during the 4th quarter worth about $60,000. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in Perdoceo Education by 47.5% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,696 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,000 after purchasing an additional 1,190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Perdoceo Education by 53.8% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 3,875 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 1,355 shares in the last quarter. 93.46% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.