Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) Releases FY 2026 Earnings Guidance

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) updated its FY 2026 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of 2.040-2.100 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 2.130. The company issued revenue guidance of $1.9 billion-$1.9 billion, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $1.9 billion. Laureate Education also updated its Q3 2026 guidance to EPS.

Laureate Education Price Performance

LAUR remained flat at $38.41 during trading on Thursday. 1,401,055 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,436,476. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $36.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $34.65. The stock has a market cap of $5.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.22, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.40. Laureate Education has a fifty-two week low of $21.53 and a fifty-two week high of $40.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.57.

Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.04. Laureate Education had a net margin of 16.08% and a return on equity of 22.07%. The business’s revenue was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.79 earnings per share. Laureate Education has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.040-2.100 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Laureate Education will post 2.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LAUR has been the subject of several recent research reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on Laureate Education from $37.50 to $39.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley cut Laureate Education from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and set a $34.50 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Laureate Education from $41.50 to $41.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 4th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Laureate Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Laureate Education from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Laureate Education has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $40.50.

Laureate Education News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Laureate Education this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Laureate’s Q2 revenue increased 17% year over year to $615.9 million, while adjusted EBITDA rose 17% to $250.6 million. Net income climbed 41% to $137.1 million, and adjusted EPS of $1.00 exceeded the $0.96 analyst consensus. Laureate forecasts 2026 revenue and expands buyback
• Positive Sentiment: Enrollment trends remained favorable: first-half new enrollments rose 10% and total enrollment increased 6% to 501,400 students, supporting the company’s growth outlook. Laureate reports strong Q2 results
• Positive Sentiment: Laureate raised its full-year 2026 outlook to $1.920 billion-$1.930 billion in revenue, $593 million-$599 million in adjusted EBITDA and $2.04-$2.10 in adjusted EPS. The board also authorized an additional $150 million for share repurchases after approximately $76 million of buybacks in the first half. Laureate second-quarter financial results
• Positive Sentiment: A three-year Google Cloud agreement will expand Laureate’s AI capabilities, digital learning infrastructure and career programs across its Mexico and Peru universities, potentially improving long-term competitiveness. Laureate Google Cloud AI partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported growth benefited from favorable foreign-exchange movements: first-half revenue rose 17%, versus 6% on a constant-currency basis. Management expects approximately $9 million of academic-calendar timing headwinds from the first half to reverse in the second half.
• Negative Sentiment: The $2.04-$2.10 full-year adjusted EPS outlook is below the $2.13 consensus cited in the reports, while third-quarter revenue guidance of $471 million-$476 million trails the $481 million estimate. This may be limiting enthusiasm despite the earnings beat. Laureate Q2 earnings and revenue results
• Negative Sentiment: Gross debt increased to $223.2 million, although net debt remained relatively modest at $61.5 million. Recent insider activity also consisted of three sales and no purchases, a secondary potential confidence signal for investors.

Institutional Trading of Laureate Education

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LAUR. Jane Street Group LLC grew its holdings in Laureate Education by 54.5% during the 4th quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 769,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,911,000 after buying an additional 271,392 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Laureate Education by 40.1% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 597,598 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,121,000 after buying an additional 171,158 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Laureate Education by 23.8% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 270,082 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,094,000 after buying an additional 51,863 shares in the last quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of Laureate Education by 251.2% during the third quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 246,178 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,764,000 after acquiring an additional 176,077 shares during the last quarter. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd grew its stake in Laureate Education by 213.9% during the fourth quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 145,284 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,892,000 after acquiring an additional 99,002 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.27% of the company’s stock.

Laureate Education Company Profile

Laureate Education, Inc (NASDAQ: LAUR) is a leading global network of higher education institutions dedicated to providing undergraduate, graduate and certificate programs to a diverse student body. The company designs and delivers academic offerings through a combination of campus-based and online platforms, focusing on fields such as business, health sciences, engineering, education and hospitality management. By aligning its curriculum with regional workforce needs, Laureate aims to equip students with practical skills and industry insights that support career advancement and lifelong learning.

Through its network, Laureate operates a broad portfolio of universities and colleges, including both longstanding campus institutions and digitally native programs.