Should I Buy LRN? LRN 2026 Analysis

Should You Buy Stride Inc (LRN) Today? Analysis, Price Targets, and 2026 Outlook.

Conclusion

Hold

Latest Price

84.040

1 Day change

1.56%

52 Week Range

171.170

Analysis Updated At

2026/01/26

Stride Inc (LRN) is not a strong buy at the moment for a beginner investor with a long-term focus. While the company has shown strong YoY growth in revenue, net income, and EPS, the stock faces significant negative sentiment from legal investigations, compliance issues, and declining analyst price targets. Additionally, the stock appears overbought technically, and there are no strong proprietary trading signals to suggest immediate action. For a long-term investor, it may be better to wait for clarity on the legal and operational challenges before committing capital.

Technical Analysis

The MACD is positive and expanding, indicating bullish momentum. However, the RSI of 81.638 signals the stock is overbought, suggesting a potential pullback. The price is near resistance levels (R1: 72.678, R2: 74.112), with support at S1: 68.032 and S2: 66.598. Moving averages are converging, indicating indecision.

Options Data

Bullish

Open Interest Put-Call Ratio

Bearish

Option Volume Put-Call Ratio

Technical Summary

Sell

Buy

Positive Catalysts

Management believes the worst of operational challenges is behind them, and upcoming earnings on January 27, 2026, could provide further clarity.

Neutral/Negative Catalysts

Multiple legal investigations into fiduciary breaches and compliance issues, including allegations of inflating enrollment figures and suppressing whistleblowers. Significant analyst downgrades and reduced price targets due to operational challenges and a botched platform rollout. Overbought technical indicators suggest limited immediate upside.

Financial Performance

In Q1 2026, revenue increased to $620.88M (+12.67% YoY), net income rose to $68.8M (+68.29% YoY), and EPS grew to $1.4 (+48.94% YoY). However, gross margin slightly declined to 39% (-0.43% YoY).

Growth

Profitability

Efficiency

Analyst Ratings and Price Target Trends

Analysts have significantly reduced price targets, with Morgan Stanley lowering to $95, BMO Capital to $82, and Barrington to $125. Ratings range from Equal Weight to Market Perform, with concerns over operational challenges and compliance issues.

5 Analyst Rating

Wall Street analysts forecast LRN stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for LRN is 106.75 USD with a low forecast of 82 USD and a high forecast of 125 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.

3 Buy

2 Hold

0 Sell

Moderate Buy

Current: 82.750

Low

Averages

106.75

High

125

Current: 82.750

Low

Averages

106.75

High

125

Morgan Stanley

Greg Parrish

Equal Weight

downgrade

$130 -> $95

AI Analysis

2025-12-17

Reason

Morgan Stanley

Greg Parrish

Price Target

$130 -> $95

AI Analysis

2025-12-17

downgrade

Equal Weight

Reason

Morgan Stanley analyst Greg Parrish lowered the firm's price target on Stride to $95 from $130 and keeps an Equal Weight rating on the shares. 2025 marked a shift in Info Services, bifurcating leaders and laggards in the group based on AI, notes the analyst, who assumes AI will continue to be an important theme in 2026 among the group.

BMO Capital

Market Perform

downgrade

$108 -> $82

2025-11-07

Reason

BMO Capital

Price Target

$108 -> $82

2025-11-07

downgrade

Market Perform

Reason

BMO Capital lowered the firm's price target on Stride to $82 from $108 and keeps a Market Perform rating on the shares. The stock sold off on disclosure of a botched platform integration, though the company has not received non-renewal notices from partners on this matter, crediting its goodwill with these organizations, and the management hopes for fixes over the next few months and is optimistic for the upcoming school year, the analyst tells investors in a research note.

Unlock Full Analyst Thesis， Get the complete breakdown of rating reason for LRN

Unlock Now

LRN Should I Buy

LRN Should I Buy

Should You Buy Stride Inc (LRN) Today? Analysis, Price Targets, and 2026 Outlook.

Technical Analysis

Options Data

Technical Summary

Positive Catalysts

Neutral/Negative Catalysts

Financial Performance

Growth

Profitability

Efficiency

Analyst Ratings and Price Target Trends

People Also Watch