Stride (LRN)
NYSE:LRN
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Stride
(NYSE:LRN)
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Rating:81Outperform
Price Target:
$107.00
▲(8.70% Upside)
Action:ReiteratedDate:04/29/26
The score is driven primarily by strong financial performance (growth, margin expansion over time, and high cash generation) and a very low P/E valuation. These positives are tempered by mixed technicals (still below the 200-day average with neutral momentum) and a cautious near-term earnings outlook featuring margin pressure, attrition/platform impacts, and a softer Q4 implied by guidance.
Positive Factors
Cash generation & liquidity
Strong operating and free cash flow with a large cash balance provide durable financial flexibility. This supports multi-year investments, absorbs enrollment or funding variability, funds strategic initiatives and reduces refinancing risk, underpinning resilient capital allocation over 2–6 months.
Negative Factors
Platform-driven margin pressure
Ongoing platform remediation and rollout expenses have materially compressed margins. Until platform stability and scale are achieved, these costs can persistently weigh on profitability and cash conversion, requiring sustained execution to realize long-term efficiency gains.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Cash generation & liquidity
Strong operating and free cash flow with a large cash balance provide durable financial flexibility. This supports multi-year investments, absorbs enrollment or funding variability, funds strategic initiatives and reduces refinancing risk, underpinning resilient capital allocation over 2–6 months.
Read all positive factors
Stride (LRN) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)
Market Cap
$3.96B
Dividend YieldN/A
Average Volume (3M)700.80K
Price to Earnings (P/E)10.7
Beta (1Y)0.30
Revenue Growth10.93%
EPS Growth2.97%
CountryUS
Employees7,800
SectorConsumer Defensive
Sector Strength42
IndustryEducation & Training Services
Share Statistics
EPS (TTM)1.93
Shares Outstanding42,524,840
10 Day Avg. Volume619,172
30 Day Avg. Volume700,803
Financial Highlights & Ratios
PEG Ratio0.55
Price to Book (P/B)4.22
Price to Sales (P/S)2.60
P/FCF Ratio16.76
Enterprise Value/Market Cap1.01
Enterprise Value/Revenue1.57
Enterprise Value/Gross Profit4.10
Enterprise Value/Ebitda7.44
Forecast
1Y Price Target
$113.50Price Target Upside15.30% Upside
Rating ConsensusModerate Buy
Number of Analyst Covering3
EPS Forecast (FY)7.11
Revenue Forecast (FY)$2.52B
Stride Business Overview & Revenue Model
Company Description
Stride, Inc., a technology-based education service company, provides proprietary and third-party online curriculum, software systems, and educational services to facilitate individualized learning for students primarily in kindergarten through 12t...
How the Company Makes Money
Stride primarily generates revenue by delivering education services and selling education-related products, with funding largely tied to student enrollments and service contracts. A major portion of revenue comes from operating online public-schoo...
Stride Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Date:Apr 28, 2026
(Q3-2026)
| % Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:Aug 11, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Positive
Overall the call balanced measurable near-term challenges (notably a 380 bps gross margin decline driven by platform investments, a 5% drop in General Education enrollment, ongoing platform remediation and marginally higher attrition) against multiple positive indicators: modest revenue growth (+2.7%), enrollment growth (+1.8%), strong Career Learning performance (+~16% revenue, +11.6% enrollment), a large sequential improvement in free cash flow, meaningful SG&A reductions, narrowed guidance ranges, and a robust new-business pipeline. Management framed the investments and enrollment trade-offs as deliberate to protect long-term demand and positioning.Positive Updates
Quarterly Revenue and Enrollment Growth
Total revenue of $629.9 million, up 2.7% year-over-year; total enrollments grew 1.8% to 244,500.
Negative Updates
Gross Margin Pressure
Gross margin fell to 36.8%, down 380 basis points year-over-year, primarily driven by continued investments and costs related to the platform rollout and transition.
Read all updates
Q3-2026 Updates
Positive
Negative
Quarterly Revenue and Enrollment Growth
Total revenue of $629.9 million, up 2.7% year-over-year; total enrollments grew 1.8% to 244,500.
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
Management narrowed full‑year guidance to revenue of $2.490–$2.520 billion (from $2.480–$2.555B prior), adjusted operating income of $490–$500 million (from $485–$505M), and capital expenditures of $75–$80 million (from $70–$80M), while affirming an effective tax rate of 24–25%. They expect full‑year gross margin of ~37.0–37.4% (Q3 was 36.8%, down 380 bps) and total revenue per enrollment to be up roughly 2% for the year (Q3 RPE $2,485, up 2.9% from $2,415). Full‑year stock‑based compensation is guided to $40–$42 million, SG&A to finish down ~6–8% year‑over‑year (Q3 SG&A $102.5M, down 13.5%), adjusted EBITDA and adjusted operating income for Q3 were $171.3M (up 1.8%) and $140.4M (down 1%), adjusted EPS was $2.30 (down $0.03), Q3 CapEx was $18.5M, Q3 free cash flow was $202.4M (vs. $37.3M prior year) with FY free cash flow expected to be flattish, and cash and marketable securities totaled $856M. Management noted the guidance implies Q4 revenue below last year due to marginally higher attrition and timing of funding true‑ups and expects Q4 profitability to be lower than Q3 as they ramp marketing for the fall.Stride Financial Statement Overview
Summary
Income Statement
87
Very Positive
Balance Sheet
82
Very Positive
Cash Flow
86
Very Positive
| Breakdown | TTM | Jun 2025 | Jun 2024 | Jun 2023 | Jun 2022 | Jun 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Income Statement | ||||||
| Total Revenue | 2.54B | 2.41B | 2.04B | 1.84B | 1.69B | 1.54B |
| Gross Profit | 972.24M | 943.92M | 763.60M | 647.07M | 596.48M | 534.90M |
| EBITDA | 535.73M | 508.39M | 386.18M | 291.31M | 253.26M | 203.36M |
| Net Income | 308.12M | 287.94M | 204.18M | 126.87M | 107.13M | 71.45M |
Balance Sheet | ||||||
| Total Assets | 2.45B | 2.29B | 1.92B | 1.76B | 1.64B | 1.58B |
| Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments | 805.84M | 985.27M | 692.29M | 522.73M | 389.40M | 386.08M |
| Total Debt | 547.42M | 549.76M | 528.21M | 543.81M | 565.67M | 466.28M |
| Total Liabilities | 805.01M | 814.34M | 744.44M | 813.37M | 830.96M | 772.65M |
| Stockholders Equity | 1.64B | 1.48B | 1.18B | 947.30M | 812.58M | 804.65M |
Cash Flow | ||||||
| Free Cash Flow | 400.10M | 372.81M | 217.21M | 136.60M | 139.26M | 81.89M |
| Operating Cash Flow | 415.29M | 432.82M | 278.80M | 203.15M | 206.88M | 134.15M |
| Investing Cash Flow | -153.97M | -88.00M | -139.87M | -118.24M | -110.76M | -165.44M |
| Financing Cash Flow | -178.41M | -62.94M | -49.12M | -63.50M | -93.31M | 204.58M |
Stride Technical Analysis
Positive
98.44
Price Trends
87.06
Positive
77.81
Positive
105.51
Negative
Market Momentum
2.79
Negative
76.48
Negative
92.46
Negative
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For LRN, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 98.44 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 89.78, above the 50-day MA of 87.06, and below the 200-day MA of 105.51, indicating a neutral trend. The MACD of 2.79 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 76.48 is Negative, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 92.46 is Negative, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for LRN.
Stride Risk Analysis
Stride disclosed 45 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Stride reported the most risks in the "Tech & Innovation" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 0 New Risks
Stride Peers Comparison
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (62)
Name | Overall Rating | Market Cap | P/E Ratio | ROE | Dividend Yield | Revenue Growth | EPS Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
85 Outperform | $2.11B | 11.89 | 16.30% | 1.88% | 24.20% | 9.66% | |
81 Outperform | $3.96B | 10.69 | 19.89% | ― | 10.93% | 2.97% | |
77 Outperform | $1.77B | 13.67 | 7.85% | 2.99% | 3.02% | 20.69% | |
64 Neutral | $1.04B | -11.97 | -10.06% | ― | 9.79% | 8.61% | |
62 Neutral | $20.33B | 14.63 | -3.31% | 3.23% | 1.93% | -12.26% | |
55 Neutral | $2.25B | -37.50 | -13.36% | ― | 3.17% | 4.85% |
* Consumer Defensive Sector Average
LRN
Stride
93.08
-67.64
-42.09%
PRDO
Perdoceo Education
33.64
3.36
11.11%
STRA
Strategic Education
78.24
-5.38
-6.43%
COUR
Coursera
6.15
-2.45
-28.49%
MH
McGraw Hill, Inc.
11.77
-5.04
-29.98%
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
Disclaimer
This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.