Universal Technical Institute (UTI) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $1.91B
• Dividend Yield: N/A
• Average Volume (3M): 772.80K
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 36.2
• Beta (1Y): 0.86
• 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: 1,089,466
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 772,800
• 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: 1.20
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: 2.67
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 5.39
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: 18.00
• 1Y Price Target: $36.50
• Price Target Upside: 6.10% Upside
• Rating Consensus: Strong Buy
• Number of Analyst Covering: 5
• EPS Forecast (FY): 0.78
• Revenue Forecast (FY): $909.25M

• Rating: 69 Neutral
• Price Target: $38.00 ▲(10.47% Upside)
• Action: Reiterated Date: 02/26/26
• Date: Action: Reiterated 02/26/26

The score is primarily supported by improving financial performance (revenue/margin expansion and strong ROE) and a constructive outlook from the earnings call with reiterated guidance and strong campus execution. Offsetting factors are weaker near-term free cash flow due to heavy investment/CapEx, premium valuation (P/E ~36 with no dividend), and technically overbought momentum signals despite an overall uptrend.

Positive Factors

Revenue & Margin Expansion

UTI has materially scaled revenue while expanding margins, indicating durable demand for technical training and improving operating leverage. Larger scale and higher profitability provide sustainable capacity to fund program investment, support campus openings and absorb cyclical headwinds over multiple years.

Repeatable Campus Ramp Success

Outperforming new-site metrics show a repeatable playbook for campus openings, improving unit economics and shortening payback on growth capex. Reliable ramps reduce execution risk, accelerate revenue realization from new investments, and support the company’s multi-year expansion targets.

Improved Leverage & High ROE

Leverage has materially improved versus prior years while returns on equity remain strong, reflecting efficient capital deployment. A healthier balance sheet and elevated ROE increase financial resilience and provide capacity to fund targeted growth without immediate dilutive financing.

Negative Factors

Heavy Growth CapEx Compresses FCF

Sizable planned investment (≈$100M) to open and equip campuses materially suppresses free cash flow in the medium term. Elevated growth capex reduces excess cash available for debt paydown or returns and makes near-term financial flexibility and margin recovery dependent on successful, timely ramps.

Recent FCF Volatility and Weakening Cash Conversion

Cash generation has become uneven, with a sharp FCF decline and historical episodes of negative free cash flow. This volatility increases refinancing and liquidity risk, complicates funding of organic expansion and makes consistent investment returns dependent on restoring stable cash conversion.

Regulatory & Timing Risk for Campus Openings

Dependence on state approvals injects structural timing uncertainty into the roll‑out schedule. Delays can push out revenue and lengthen payback on capex, making quarterly results lumpy and raising the execution risk of meeting multi-year revenue and EBITDA targets tied to new campus cadence.

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 generates revenue primarily through tuition and fees paid by students enrolled in its various technical training programs. The institute offers both certificate and degree programs, which are priced based on the length and complexity of the educational curriculum. Additional revenue streams include financial aid services, where UTI assists students in securing federal and state funding, as well as private loans. The institute has established partnerships with major automotive brands and industry employers, which not only help enhance curriculum relevance but may also lead to job placement opportunities for graduates, further boosting UTI's appeal to prospective students. Furthermore, UTI may receive funds through grants and sponsorships related to workforce development initiatives.

Universal Technical Institute Financial Statement Overview

Summary

Strong revenue and margin expansion with solid operating profitability and high ROE, but the score is pulled down by weaker and inconsistent cash generation (sharp TTM free-cash-flow drop and prior periods of negative FCF) plus still-meaningful absolute debt levels despite improved leverage.

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: 34.40
• 50DMA: Positive
• 100DMA: Positive
• 200DMA: Positive
• MACD: Negative
• RSI: Negative
• STOCH: Negative

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 34.4 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 29.23, above the 50-day MA of 27.92, and above the 200-day MA of 29.71, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 1.63 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 72.84 is Negative, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 96.17 is Negative, 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	79 Outperform	$2.03B	13.47	16.55%	1.88%	24.23%	17.56%
ATGE	73 Outperform	$3.44B	14.15	17.92%	―	12.24%	52.97%
UTI	69 Neutral	$1.91B	36.15	17.44%	―	14.05%	51.96%
APEI	68 Neutral	$822.15M	34.84	11.20%	―	6.75%	141.11%
STRA	68 Neutral	$1.77B	15.69	6.76%	2.99%	3.74%	-8.40%
Sector *	62 Neutral	$20.33B	14.63	-3.31%	3.23%	1.93%	-12.26%
LINC	61 Neutral	$1.12B	54.32	10.58%	―	16.90%	41.11%

Universal Technical Institute Corporate Events

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.