Universal Technical Institute (UTI) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $1.98B
• Dividend Yield: N/A
• Average Volume (3M): 892.19K
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 27.8
• Beta (1Y): 0.82
• Revenue Growth: 14.05%
• EPS Growth: 51.96%
• Country: US
• Employees: 3,700
• Sector: Consumer Defensive
• Sector Strength: 42
• Industry: Education & Training Services
• EPS (TTM): 0.23
• Shares Outstanding: 55,020,508
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 616,061
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 892,190
• PEG Ratio: 0.55
• Price to Book (P/B): 5.39
• Price to Sales (P/S): 2.12
• P/FCF Ratio: 31.93
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 1.19
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: 2.76
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 5.56
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: 18.56
• 1Y Price Target: $36.80
• Price Target Upside: 2.22% Upside
• Rating Consensus: Strong Buy
• Number of Analyst Covering: 6
• EPS Forecast (FY): 0.78
• Revenue Forecast (FY): $909.25M

• Rating: 69 Neutral
• Price Target: $39.00 ▲(8.33% Upside)
• Action: Reiterated Date: 03/19/26
• Date: Action: Reiterated 03/19/26

The score is driven primarily by improving financial performance (strong revenue/margin trajectory and ROE) tempered by weakening recent free cash flow. Technicals are supportive with clear upward trend and positive momentum, while valuation is less compelling at a ~27.8 P/E and no dividend yield. Earnings-call guidance is constructive but explicitly comes with near-term profitability and cash-flow pressure due to elevated growth investments and CapEx.

Positive Factors

Revenue & margin expansion

Sustained top-line scale and margin expansion reflect structural demand for skilled-trades training and improved operating leverage. The move from lower-margin years to consistent EBITDA margins supports durable earnings power, reinvestment capacity, and the ability to fund campus growth without relying solely on external financing.

Improved balance sheet & ROE

Material improvement in leverage and strong ROE provides financial flexibility to execute capex and expansion plans. A lower relative debt load and rising equity reduce refinancing pressure, improving the firm's ability to absorb growth investment cycles and maintain credit optionality over the medium term.

Repeatable campus ramp & program expansion

Demonstrated outsized campus ramp success and a disciplined multi-campus rollout model create a scalable growth engine. Repeatability of launches and targeted new programs aligned to employer needs support durable enrollment growth, improving long-term revenue CAGR prospects and curriculum relevance.

Negative Factors

Weak free cash flow

Sharp decline and volatility in FCF signal constrained cash conversion despite profitable operations. Persistent FCF weakness limits internal funding for growth, raises dependency on liquidity lines or debt, and reduces margin for error if enrollments or collections soften, increasing financing risk during expansion.

High CapEx and growth spend

Sustained, sizable growth capex materially compresses near-term adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow, producing lumpy quarterly profitability. Required upfront campus and program spending extends payback periods, intensifies execution risk, and constrains the pace at which incremental profits convert to free cash.

Regulatory & inorganic growth constraints

Dependence on state approvals creates timing risk that can delay revenue recognition from new campuses and lengthen payback of upfront investments. Coupled with a thin acquisition pipeline, this raises reliance on organic builds and execution cadence, concentrating growth risk in project delivery and regulatory timelines.

Universal Technical Institute Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

Universal Technical Institute, Inc. provides transportation and technical training programs in the United States. The company provides postsecondary education for students seeking careers as professional automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle, and marine technicians. It also offers certificate, diploma, or degree programs under various brands, such as Universal Technical Institute, Motorcycle Mechanics Institute and Marine Mechanics Institute, and NASCAR Technical Institute. In addition, the company provides manufacturer specific advanced training programs, including student paid electives at its campuses; and manufacturer or dealer sponsored training at various campuses and dedicated training centers, as well as offers programs for welding and computer numeric control machining. As of September 30, 2021, it operated 12 campuses. Universal Technical Institute, Inc. was founded in 1965 and is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona.

How the Company Makes Money

UTI primarily generates revenue by charging tuition and fees to students enrolled in its career training programs. A significant portion of these payments is typically funded through student financial aid programs (including government-sponsored aid where eligible) and other student financing or out-of-pocket payments; specific mix details are null. In addition to tuition-related revenue, UTI can earn income from educational services and related fees associated with delivering training (e.g., course-related fees and other student charges); detailed breakout by category is null. The company also benefits from relationships with industry employers and manufacturers that help align curriculum and support recruiting outcomes; however, the extent to which these partnerships directly contribute material revenue (e.g., through sponsorships, equipment support, or other payments) is null. Overall, UTI’s earnings are driven by student enrollment levels, retention and completion, pricing (tuition/fees), and the capacity utilization of its campuses and programs.

Universal Technical Institute Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Strong revenue and margin expansion with solid ROE and improved leverage, but the sharp TTM free-cash-flow decline and historically uneven FCF reduce overall quality and consistency.

Income Statement

Profitability and scale have improved meaningfully. Revenue is up from $335M (FY2021) to $836M (FY2025 annual), with TTM (Trailing-Twelve-Months) revenue at $855M and strong recent growth shown in the TTM figure. Margins have expanded versus earlier years (net margin improved from ~2.0% in FY2023 to ~7.5% in FY2025/TTM), and operating profitability is solid (TTM operating profit margin ~10.6%, EBITDA margin ~16.6%). The main weakness is some volatility in growth and profits historically (e.g., weaker profitability in FY2023), which makes the trajectory less “steady-state” despite clear improvement.

Balance Sheet

Leverage has improved versus the more stretched period in FY2023–FY2024, with debt-to-equity now ~0.79 (FY2025/TTM) and equity rising to ~$336M on ~$834M of assets (TTM). Returns on shareholders’ capital are strong (return on equity ~19% in FY2025 annual and ~21% TTM), indicating better earnings power. The key downside is debt remains meaningful in absolute terms (TTM total debt ~$268M; FY2025 annual shows higher debt), and prior years showed higher leverage (debt-to-equity above 1.0), suggesting the balance sheet is improved but not conservatively capitalized.

Cash Flow

Cash generation is positive but has weakened recently. TTM operating cash flow is ~$77M, but free cash flow is only ~$16.6M and down sharply versus FY2025 annual free cash flow (~$55M), with TTM free cash flow growth of about -70%. Cash conversion is mixed: TTM free cash flow is about 57% of net income, which is acceptable, but the large step-down in free cash flow suggests higher reinvestment needs or working-capital pressure. Earlier years also showed periods of negative free cash flow (FY2021–FY2023), adding cyclicality risk to cash performance.

Breakdown	TTM	Sep 2025	Sep 2024	Sep 2023	Sep 2022	Sep 2021
Income Statement
Total Revenue	855.03M	835.62M	732.69M	607.41M	418.76M	335.08M
Gross Profit	423.64M	415.13M	348.16M	275.68M	211.53M	168.26M
EBITDA	126.93M	146.69M	116.89M	73.56M	55.03M	45.09M
Net Income	53.69M	63.02M	42.00M	12.32M	25.85M	14.58M
Balance Sheet
Total Assets	833.96M	826.14M	744.58M	740.68M	552.91M	512.57M
Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments	162.81M	169.15M	161.90M	151.55M	98.91M	133.72M
Total Debt	459.13M	278.90M	294.75M	349.62M	209.80M	198.03M
Total Liabilities	498.05M	498.03M	484.34M	514.72M	337.51M	324.04M
Stockholders Equity	335.91M	328.11M	260.23M	225.97M	215.40M	188.53M
Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow	16.58M	55.35M	61.60M	-7.54M	-33.43M	-6.40M
Operating Cash Flow	77.45M	97.33M	85.89M	49.15M	46.03M	55.19M
Investing Cash Flow	-131.09M	-87.88M	-24.00M	-44.07M	-134.60M	-22.95M
Financing Cash Flow	-26.65M	-42.79M	-51.34M	81.85M	12.59M	24.82M

Universal Technical Institute Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Positive
• Last Price: 36.00
• 50DMA: Positive
• 100DMA: Positive
• 200DMA: Positive
• MACD: Positive
• RSI: Neutral
• STOCH: Neutral

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For UTI, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 36 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 35.00, above the 50-day MA of 30.70, and above the 200-day MA of 29.80, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 1.65 indicates Positive momentum. The RSI at 60.58 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 69.64 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for UTI.

Universal Technical Institute Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
PRDO	85 Outperform	$2.14B	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%
APEI	71 Outperform	$998.43M	21.57	11.20%	―	6.75%	141.11%
UTI	69 Neutral	$1.98B	27.79	16.98%	―	14.05%	51.96%
Sector *	62 Neutral	$20.33B	14.63	-3.31%	3.23%	1.93%	-12.26%
LINC	61 Neutral	$1.23B	14.71	10.75%	―	16.90%	41.11%

Universal Technical Institute Corporate Events

Universal Technical Institute Shareholders Back Board and Pay

Universal Technical Institute, Inc. held its Annual Meeting of Stockholders on March 12, 2026, where shareholders elected three Class I directors — Robert T. DeVincenzi, Jerome A. Grant and Shannon L. Okinaka — to serve three-year terms ending in 2029. Investors also ratified Deloitte & Touche LLP as the company’s independent auditor for the 2026 fiscal year and approved, on an advisory basis, the compensation of the company’s named executive officers, signaling broad shareholder support for current leadership and governance practices.

No additional proposals were brought to a vote at the meeting, indicating a relatively routine governance agenda focused on board continuity, audit oversight and executive pay. The strong majorities in favor of all three items reinforce the company’s existing strategic direction and may provide management with a stable mandate as it continues to execute its operational and financial plans.

The most recent analyst rating on (UTI) stock is a Buy with a $38.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on Universal Technical Institute stock, see the UTI Stock Forecast page.

Universal Technical Institute Delivers Q1 2026 Results, Reaffirms Outlook

Universal Technical Institute reported fiscal 2026 first-quarter results on February 4, 2026, with revenue climbing 9.6% to $220.8 million as student enrollment expanded, while net income fell to $12.8 million and adjusted EBITDA dropped 23.5% because of $7.6 million in strategic growth expenses tied to new campuses and program expansions. Management reiterated full-year guidance, citing momentum from new site launches, strengthened liquidity of $233.2 million, and continued investment in curriculum and facilities to scale its North Star strategy and reinforce its positioning as a leading workforce solutions provider.

The most recent analyst rating on (UTI) stock is a Hold with a $31.00 price target. To see the full list of analyst forecasts on Universal Technical Institute stock, see the UTI Stock Forecast page.