Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR – Get Free Report) is one of 165 publicly-traded companies in the “Diversified Consumer Services” industry, but how does it contrast to its rivals? We will compare Laureate Education to similar companies based on the strength of its dividends, valuation, earnings, profitability, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations and risk.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares Laureate Education and its rivals top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Net Income | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Laureate Education | $1.70 billion | $281.63 million | 12.84 |
| Laureate Education Competitors | $3.26 billion | $221.82 million | 15.41 |
Laureate Education’s rivals have higher revenue, but lower earnings than Laureate Education. Laureate Education is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its rivals, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.
Profitability
This table compares Laureate Education and its rivals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Laureate Education | 20.28% | 26.41% | 12.76% |
| Laureate Education Competitors | -3.82% | -29.65% | 2.33% |
Volatility and Risk
Laureate Education has a beta of 0.45, indicating that its stock price is 55% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Laureate Education’s rivals have a beta of 0.53, indicating that their average stock price is 47% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of recent recommendations for Laureate Education and its rivals, as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Laureate Education | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2.57 |
| Laureate Education Competitors | 1442 | 3454 | 5299 | 197 | 2.41 |
Laureate Education currently has a consensus price target of $40.90, indicating a potential upside of 16.70%. As a group, “Diversified Consumer Services” companies have a potential upside of 63.70%. Given Laureate Education’s rivals higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Laureate Education has less favorable growth aspects than its rivals.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
96.3% of Laureate Education shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 49.0% of shares of all “Diversified Consumer Services” companies are held by institutional investors. 1.5% of Laureate Education shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 19.5% of shares of all “Diversified Consumer Services” companies are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.
Summary
Laureate Education beats its rivals on 7 of the 13 factors compared.
Laureate Education Company Profile
Laureate Education, Inc. operates a network of private higher education institutions in Mexico and Peru. Its principal institutions are Universidad del Valle de México (UVM) and Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas (UPC). The company offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs, as well as other academic and professional education, across fields that include business, health sciences, engineering and technology. Its institutions serve students through campus-based and digital learning options.
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