Laureate Education (LAUR) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $4.89B
• Dividend Yield: N/A
• Average Volume (3M): 1.40M
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 17.7
• Beta (1Y): 0.81
• Revenue Growth: 2.01%
• EPS Growth: -13.82%
• Country: US
• Employees: 31,800
• Sector: Consumer Defensive
• Sector Strength: 42
• Industry: Education & Training Services
• EPS (TTM): 0.76
• Shares Outstanding: 142,743,640
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 2,056,901
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 1,402,330
• PEG Ratio: -17.05
• Price to Book (P/B): 4.19
• Price to Sales (P/S): 2.92
• P/FCF Ratio: 18.91
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 1.11
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: 3.20
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 11.29
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: 10.41
• 1Y Price Target: $38.88
• Price Target Upside: 13.55% Upside
• Rating Consensus: Strong Buy
• Number of Analyst Covering: 4
• EPS Forecast (FY): 2.11
• Revenue Forecast (FY): $1.89B

• Rating: 74 Outperform
• Price Target: $38.00 ▲(10.98% Upside)
• Action: Reiterated Date: 03/10/26
• Date: Action: Reiterated 03/10/26

The score is driven primarily by strengthening financial performance (improving growth/profitability and a de-risked balance sheet) and supportive earnings-call guidance for continued revenue, EBITDA, and EPS growth. Offsetting factors are mixed technical signals (negative MACD) and only moderate valuation support (P/E ~17.7 with no dividend yield provided).

Positive Factors

Revenue & Margin Expansion

Sustained revenue growth through 2021–2025 and a record-adjusted EBITDA margin indicate durable operating leverage and improved unit economics. Higher margins support reinvestment, shareholder returns, and resilience across cycles, enhancing long-term cash generation and strategic flexibility.

De-risked Balance Sheet

A materially lower debt load and modest net cash position reduce refinancing and solvency risk, improving financial flexibility to fund campus investments, buybacks, or digital initiatives. This stronger capital structure supports execution of multi-year growth plans while limiting covenant/interest sensitivity.

Scale & Online Market Position

Large scale across Latin America and a sizable online footprint create durable competitive advantages: diversified enrollment streams, fixed-cost dilution, and network effects for student outcomes. Continued digital/AI adoption increases retention and lowers incremental delivery costs over time.

Negative Factors

Uneven Cash Conversion

OCF and FCF trailing net income suggest working-capital timing, reinvestment demands, or earnings quality variability. Persistent cash conversion gaps can constrain organic funding for campuses and tech investment, increasing reliance on external capital and reducing margin of safety in downturns.

Price/Mix Pressure from Peru

Structural mix shift toward lower-priced online enrollments in Peru compresses average revenue per student and constrains margin expansion until higher-margin campus capacity comes online. This dynamic can persist for multiple quarters, slowing revenue per-student recovery and EPS leverage.

Slower Organic Growth & Macro Sensitivity

A deceleration in organic growth driven by weak macro in Mexico and reliance on favorable FX for reported gains raises execution risk. Durable topline expansion may be constrained by regional GDP trends and policy, making growth more sensitive to external economic cycles over the coming quarters.

Laureate Education Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

Laureate Education, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides higher education programs and services to students through a network of universities and higher education institutions. The company offers a range of undergraduate and graduate degree programs in the areas of business and management, medicine and health sciences, and engineering and information technology through campus-based, online, and hybrid programs. It provides its services in Mexico, Peru, and the United States. The company was formerly known as Sylvan Learning Systems, Inc. and changed its name to Laureate Education, Inc. in May 2004. Laureate Education, Inc. was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Miami, Florida.

How the Company Makes Money

Laureate Education primarily makes money by charging students tuition and fees for enrollment in its degree programs (undergraduate, graduate, and other academic offerings) delivered across campus-based, online, and hybrid modalities. Revenue is generally recognized over the academic period as instruction is delivered, with cash collection driven by student payment plans and/or third-party financing arrangements where applicable. A significant driver of earnings is student enrollment volume and retention (which affect the number of billable academic periods), as well as pricing (tuition levels) and program mix (e.g., higher-priced or higher-demand programs). In addition to tuition, the company may generate ancillary student-related fees tied to educational services and campus operations; if specific categories or amounts are not publicly detailed in a source being referenced, they are null. Partnerships that can influence earnings typically include relationships with third-party providers that support online program delivery, technology platforms, marketing/recruitment services, and financing/payment processing; however, specific named partnerships are null if not explicitly available.

Laureate Education Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Overall fundamentals are improving: steady revenue growth (2021–2025), strong profitability in 2024–2025, and a meaningfully de-risked balance sheet by 2025 with sharply lower debt and robust ROE. Offsets include uneven cash conversion (FCF and OCF trailing net income in recent years) and earlier volatility (2020–2021), plus some 2025 margin data inconsistencies that reduce confidence in trend precision.

Income Statement

Revenue has grown steadily from 2021–2025 (with solid growth in 2023 and continued gains in 2024–2025), showing improving scale and demand. Profitability is strong in the last two annual periods, with net profit margins holding in the mid-to-high teens and a healthy EBITDA margin in 2025. The main weakness is historical volatility: results were deeply negative in 2020 and operating profitability was weak in 2021, and 2025 shows some margin data inconsistencies (gross and EBIT margin listed as 0.0), which reduces confidence in the precision of margin trend analysis.

Balance Sheet

Leverage has improved meaningfully, with total debt dropping sharply by 2025 and debt-to-equity moving down to a low level versus prior years, indicating reduced balance-sheet risk. Equity has also grown, supporting a stronger capital base. Returns on equity are robust in 2024–2025, consistent with strong profitability. The key drawback is that leverage was notably higher in 2022–2023, so while the trajectory is positive, the business has a recent history of carrying more debt.

Cash Flow

Cash generation is solid in 2022–2025, with operating cash flow and free cash flow both positive and improving in 2025, and free cash flow growth rebounding after a decline in 2024. However, cash conversion is not consistently strong: operating cash flow is less than net income in recent years, and free cash flow is also below net income, suggesting working-capital timing, reinvestment needs, or other cash headwinds. Earlier volatility (negative operating and free cash flow in 2021) also tempers the score.

Breakdown	Dec 2025	Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021
Income Statement
Total Revenue	1.70B	1.57B	1.48B	1.24B	1.09B
Gross Profit	482.18M	419.76M	394.51M	334.91M	272.21M
EBITDA	522.58M	537.80M	378.30M	350.80M	54.02M
Net Income	281.63M	296.47M	107.59M	69.57M	192.45M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets	2.21B	1.86B	2.13B	1.97B	2.21B
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments	146.70M	91.35M	89.39M	85.20M	324.80M
Total Debt	847.26M	427.41M	582.70M	648.00M	569.00M
Total Liabilities	1.02B	903.52M	1.18B	1.20B	1.07B
Stockholders Equity	1.19B	959.55M	950.07M	774.40M	1.14B
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow	263.15M	160.85M	194.34M	125.40M	-206.53M
Operating Cash Flow	366.19M	232.73M	250.78M	178.20M	-156.08M
Investing Cash Flow	-102.65M	-57.55M	-52.04M	30.30M	2.04B
Financing Cash Flow	-222.47M	-166.94M	-201.76M	-461.60M	-2.68B

Laureate Education Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Positive
• Last Price: 34.24
• 50DMA: Positive
• 100DMA: Positive
• 200DMA: Positive
• MACD: Negative
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For LAUR, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 34.24 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 33.38, above the 50-day MA of 34.24, and above the 200-day MA of 29.35, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of -0.04 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 54.00 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 75.32 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for LAUR.

Laureate Education Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
PRDO	85 Outperform	$2.19B	11.89	16.30%	1.88%	24.23%	17.56%
STRA	75 Outperform	$1.83B	14.05	7.65%	2.99%	3.74%	-8.40%
LAUR	74 Outperform	$4.89B	17.67	26.41%	―	2.01%	-13.82%
LOPE	73 Outperform	$4.55B	21.44	28.22%	―	7.05%	-2.63%
GHC	64 Neutral	$4.70B	16.28	6.53%	0.65%	4.13%	228.37%
Sector *	62 Neutral	$20.33B	14.63	-3.31%	3.23%	1.93%	-12.26%

Laureate Education Corporate Events

Laureate Education Posts Strong Q4 Results, Expands Buybacks

On February 19, 2026, Laureate Education reported that fourth-quarter 2025 revenue rose 28% to $541.4 million and net income climbed to $171.5 million, boosted by higher operating income and academic calendar timing effects. For full-year 2025, revenue increased 9% to $1.7 billion with higher enrollment and adjusted EBITDA of $518.9 million, though net income slipped to $283.8 million due to foreign exchange impacts.

The company highlighted a strong balance sheet with net cash of $17.6 million at year-end 2025, after repurchasing about $217 million of stock and operating with 142.9 million shares outstanding. Laureate’s board approved a $150 million increase to its stock buyback program, lifting total authorization to $400 million, while the 2026 outlook calls for mid‑single‑digit enrollment growth and low‑double‑digit gains in revenue and adjusted EBITDA, underlining continued growth momentum and shareholder returns.

The most recent analyst rating on (LAUR) stock is a Hold with a $36.50 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on Laureate Education stock, see the LAUR Stock Forecast page.