Laureate Education vs Grand Canyon Education
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KIRA’s take AI analyst
I put Laureate Education and Grand Canyon Education side by side, using each one’s latest annual report. Here is what stands out:
- Laureate Education is the larger business, with $1.7B of revenue in fiscal 2025 against $1.1B for Grand Canyon Education, about 1.5 times as much.
- Laureate Education grew revenue faster (8.6%, against 7.1%).
- Laureate Education kept more of each dollar of sales as operating profit (25.3% operating margin, against 24.0%).
- Grand Canyon Education turned more of its sales into free cash flow (21.6% FCF margin, against 15.5%).
- Grand Canyon Education earned a higher return on the capital invested in it (45.3%, against 28.6%).
- Investors pay more for each dollar of Grand Canyon Education’s earnings: a P/E of 19.8x against 17.7x for Laureate Education.
Who comes out ahead
Of the 10 measures where higher (or lower) is clearly better, how many each company leads.
Laureate Education
LAUR
4/10
Revenue growth5-year growthOperating marginPiotroski F-score
Grand Canyon Education
LOPE
6/10
Net marginFCF marginReturn on capitalReturn on equityNet debt / EBITDAShare count change
Side by side
Best in the row
| Latest fiscal year | LAUR FY25 | LOPE FY25 |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| Market cap | $5.5B | $4.3B |
| Revenue | $1.7B | $1.1B |
| Free cash flow | $263M | $239M |
| Net income | $282M | $216M |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth | 8.6% | 7.1% |
| 5-year growth | 10.7% | 5.6% |
| Share count change | −3.4% | −4.3% |
| Profitability | ||
| Gross margin | 28.3% | — |
| Operating margin | 25.3% | 24.0% |
| Net margin | 16.6% | 19.5% |
| FCF margin | 15.5% | 21.6% |
| Return on capital | 28.6% | 45.3% |
| Return on equity | 26.2% | 28.2% |
| Balance sheet | ||
| Net debt | −$19.0M | −$300M |
| Net debt / EBITDA | −0.0x | −1.0x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $215M | $265M |
| Valuation & quality | ||
| P/E | 17.7x | 19.8x |
| Piotroski F-score | 8 | 4 |
Ten years
Revenue
Operating margin
Free cash flow
Return on capital
Each company's latest fiscal year; fiscal years end in different months. The best value in each row is highlighted where higher (or lower) is clearly better. Not investment advice.