8-K

Stride, Inc. (LRN)

8-K 2024-08-06 For: 2024-08-06
View Original
Added on April 07, 2026

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

_________________

FORM 8-K

_________________

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported):  August 6, 2024

_______________________________

Stride, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

_______________________________

Delaware 001-33883 95-4774688
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation) (Commission File Number) (I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

11720 Plaza America Drive, 9th Floor

Reston, Virginia 20190

(Address of Principal Executive Offices) (Zip Code)

(703) 483-7000

(Registrant's telephone number, including area code)

NA

(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)

_______________________________

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)
Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)
Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))
Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each class Trading Symbol(s) Name of each exchange on which registered
Common Stock, $0.0001 par value per share LRN New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).

Emerging growth company ☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Item 2.02. Results of Operations and Financial Condition.

On August 6, 2024, Stride, Inc. (the “Company”) issued a press release announcing its financial results for the fourth quarter and full fiscal year ended June 30, 2024. A copy of the Company’s press release is furnished herewith as Exhibit 99.1.

The information contained in this Item 2.02, including Exhibit 99.1, is being furnished and shall not be deemed “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that Section. The information in this Item 2.02, including Exhibit 99.1, shall not be deemed incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), or the Exchange Act, except as shall be expressly set forth by specific reference in such a filing.

Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits

Exhibit No. Description
99.1 Press Release regarding financial results for the quarter and year ended June 30, 2024
104 Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document)

SIGNATURE

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

Stride, Inc.
Date: August 6, 2024 By: /s/ Vincent W. Mathis
Vincent W. Mathis
Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary

EdgarFiling EXHIBIT 99.1

Stride Posts Another Record Year

Earnings Per Share Increased 58% YoY

RESTON, Va., Aug. 06, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Stride, Inc. (NYSE: LRN), one of the nation’s most successful technology-based education companies, today announced its results for the fourth quarter and full fiscal year ended June 30, 2024.

Fiscal 2024 Highlights Compared to 2023

  • Revenue of $2,040.1 million, compared with $1,837.4 million.
  • Income from operations of $249.6 million, compared with $165.5 million.
  • Net income of $204.2 million, compared with $126.9 million.
  • Diluted net income per share of $4.69, compared with $2.97.
  • Adjusted operating income of $293.9 million, compared with $201.0 million. (1)
  • Adjusted EBITDA of $390.7 million, compared with $296.2 million. (1)

Fiscal 2024 Summary Financial Metrics

Year Ended June 30, Change 2024/2023
2024 2023 $ %
(In thousands, except percentages and per share data)
Revenues $ 2,040,069 1,837,358 202,711 11.0 %
Income from operations 249,600 165,499 84,101 50.8 %
Adjusted operating income (1) 293,940 201,027 92,913 46.2 %
Net income 204,183 126,867 77,316 60.9 %
Net income per share, diluted 4.69 2.97 1.72 57.9 %
EBITDA (1) 359,283 275,857 83,426 30.2 %
Adjusted EBITDA (1) 390,745 296,177 94,568 31.9 %
(1) To supplement our financial statements presented in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), we also present non-GAAP financial measures including adjusted operating income (loss), EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA. Management believes that these additional metrics provide useful information to investors relating to our financial performance. A reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures is provided below.
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Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2024 Highlights Compared to 2023

  • Revenue of $534.2 million, compared with $483.5 million.
  • Income from operations of $73.7 million, compared with $53.9 million.
  • Net income of $62.8 million, compared with $43.4 million.
  • Diluted net income per share of $1.42 compared with $1.01.
  • Adjusted operating income of $87.9 million, compared with $64.4 million. (1)
  • Adjusted EBITDA of $112.1 million, compared with $88.8 million. (1)

Fourth Quarter Fiscal 2024 Summary Financial Metrics

Three Months Ended June 30, Change 2024/2023
2024 2023 $ %
(In thousands, except percentages and per share data)
Revenues $ 534,183 $ 483,489 $ 50,694 10.5 %
Income from operations 73,678 53,946 19,732 36.6 %
Adjusted operating income (1) 87,896 64,430 23,466 36.4 %
Net income 62,782 43,372 19,410 44.8 %
Net income per share, diluted 1.42 1.01 0.41 40.6 %
EBITDA (1) 101,897 83,648 18,249 21.8 %
Adjusted EBITDA (1) 112,087 88,772 23,315 26.3 %
(1) To supplement our financial statements presented in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), we also present non-GAAP financial measures including adjusted operating income (loss), EBITDA and adjusted EBITDA. Management believes that these additional metrics provide useful information to investors relating to our financial performance. A reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures is provided below.
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Revenue and Enrollment Data

Revenue

The following table sets forth the Company’s revenues for the periods indicated:

Three Months Ended Year Ended
June 30, Change 2024 / 2023 June 30, Change 2024 / 2023
2024 2023 % 2024 2023 %
(In thousands, except percentages)
General Education $ 347,058 $ 295,402 17.5 % $ 1,289,193 $ 1,131,391 13.9 %
Career Learning
Middle - High School 167,219 156,668 6.7 % 651,191 586,770 11.0 %
Adult 19,906 31,419 ) (36.6 %) 99,685 119,197 ) (16.4 %)
Total Career Learning 187,125 188,087 ) (0.5 %) 750,876 705,967 6.4 %
Total Revenues $ 534,183 $ 483,489 10.5 % $ 2,040,069 $ 1,837,358 11.0 %

All values are in US Dollars.

Enrollment Data

The following table sets forth enrollment data for students in our General Education and Career Learning lines of revenue. Enrollments for General Education and Career Learning only include those students in full service public or private programs where Stride provides a combination of curriculum, technology, instructional and support services inclusive of administrative support.

Three Months Ended Change Year Ended Change
June 30, 2024 / 2023 June 30, 2024 / 2023
2024 2023 # % 2024 2023 # %
(In thousands, except percentages)
General Education (1) 120.6 110.6 10.0 9.0 % 121.6 112.3 9.3 8.3 %
Career Learning (1)(2) 72.8 65.5 7.3 11.1 % 72.7 65.9 6.8 10.3 %
Average Enrollment 193.4 176.1 17.3 9.8 % 194.3 178.2 16.1 9.0 %
(1) This data includes enrollments for which Stride receives no public funding or revenue.
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(2) No enrollments are included in Career Learning for Stride’s Adult Learning offerings.

Revenue per Enrollment Data

The following table sets forth revenue per average enrollment data for students for the period indicated. If the mix of enrollments changes, our revenues will be impacted to the extent the average revenues per enrollments are significantly different.

Three Months Ended Change Year Ended Change
June 30, 2024 / 2023 June 30, 2024 / 2023
2024 2023 % 2024 2023 %
General Education $ 2,735 $ 2,455 11.4 % $ 10,028 $ 9,270 8.2 %
Career Learning 2,294 2,389 ) (4.0 %) 8,946 8,885 0.7 %

All values are in US Dollars.

Cash Flow and Capital Allocation

As of June 30, 2024, the Company’s cash and cash equivalents and marketable securities totaled $714.2 million, compared with $545.5 million reported at June 30, 2023.

Capital expenditures for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2024 were $61.6 million, compared to $66.5 million in fiscal year 2023, and were comprised of $2.3 million of property and equipment, $40.7 million of capitalized software development and $18.7 million of capitalized curriculum development.

Fiscal Year 2025 Outlook

The Company will provide an outlook for fiscal year 2025 when it reports results for the first quarter of fiscal year 2025, anticipated to be released in October 2024. No separate guidance communication, or enrollment counts, for fiscal 2025 will be provided before that time.

Conference Call

The Company will discuss its fourth quarter and full fiscal year 2024 financial results during a conference call scheduled for Tuesday, August 6, 2024 at 5:00 p.m. eastern time (ET).

A live webcast of the call will be available at https://events.q4inc.com/attendee/804531504. To participate in the live call, investors and analysts should dial (800) 715-9871 (domestic) or +1 (646) 307-1963 (international) and provide the conference ID number 8901384. Please access the website at least 15 minutes prior to the start of the call.

A replay of the call will be posted at https://events.q4inc.com/attendee/804531504 as soon as it is available.

About Stride Inc.

Stride Inc. (NYSE: LRN) is redefining lifelong learning with innovative, high-quality education solutions. Serving learners in primary, secondary, and postsecondary settings, Stride provides a wide range of services including K-12 education, career learning, professional skills training, and talent development. Stride reaches learners in all 50 states and over 100 countries. Learn more at stridelearning.com.

Investor Contact

Timothy Casey Vice President, Investor Relations Stride, Inc. tcasey@k12.com

Special Note on Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this press release are forward-looking statements. We have tried, whenever possible, to identify these forward-looking statements using words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “continues,” “likely,” “may,” “opportunity,” “potential,” “projects,” “will,” “will be,” expects,” “plans,” “intends” and similar expressions to identify forward looking statements, whether in the negative or the affirmative. These statements reflect our current beliefs and are based upon information currently available to us. Accordingly, such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which could cause our actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, such statements. These risks, uncertainties, factors and contingencies include, but are not limited to: reduction of per pupil funding amounts at the schools we serve; inability to achieve a sufficient level of new enrollments to sustain our business model; limitations of the enrollment data we present, which may not fully capture trends in the performance of our business; failure to enter into new school contracts or renew existing contracts, in part or in their entirety; failure of the schools we serve or us to comply with federal, state and local regulations, resulting in a loss of funding, an obligation to repay funds previously received, or contractual remedies; governmental investigations that could result in fines, penalties, settlements, or injunctive relief; declines or variations in academic performance outcomes of the students and schools we serve as curriculum standards, testing programs and state accountability metrics evolve; harm to our reputation resulting from poor performance or misconduct by operators or us in any school in our industry and/or in any school in which we operate; legal and regulatory challenges from opponents of virtual public education or for-profit education companies; changes in national and local economic and business conditions and other factors, such as natural disasters, pandemics and outbreaks of contagious diseases and other adverse public health developments; discrepancies in interpretation of legislation by regulatory agencies that may lead to payment or funding disputes; termination of our contracts, or a reduction in the scope of services, with schools; failure to develop the Career Learning business; entry of new competitors with superior technologies and lower prices; unsuccessful integration of mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures; failure to further develop, maintain and enhance our technology, products, services and brands; inadequate recruiting, training and retention of effective teachers and employees; infringement of our intellectual property; disruptions to our Internet-based learning and delivery systems, including, but not limited to, our data storage systems and third-party cloud systems and facilities, resulting from cybersecurity attacks; misuse or unauthorized disclosure of student and personal data; and failure to prevent or mitigate a cybersecurity incident that affects our systems; and other risks and uncertainties associated with our business described in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Although the Company believes the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that the expectations will be attained or that any deviation will not be material. All information in this press release is as of today’s date, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to conform the statement to actual results or changes in the Company’s expectations.

Financial Statements

The financial statements set forth below are not the complete set of Stride, Inc.’s financial statements for the three and twelve months ended June 30, 2024 and are presented below without footnotes. Readers are encouraged to obtain and carefully review Stride Inc.’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended June 30, 2024, including all financial statements contained therein and the footnotes thereto, filed with the SEC, which may be retrieved from the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov or from Stride Inc.’s website at www.stridelearning.com.

STRIDE, INC.<br><br>CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
Three Months Ended Year Ended
June 30, June 30,
2024 2023 2024 2023
(In thousands except share and per share data)
Revenues $ 534,183 $ 483,489 $ 2,040,069 $ 1,837,358
Instructional costs and services 345,971 311,408 1,276,466 1,190,288
Gross margin 188,212 172,081 763,603 647,070
Selling, general, and administrative expenses 114,534 118,135 514,003 481,571
Income from operations 73,678 53,946 249,600 165,499
Interest expense, net (2,318 ) (2,070 ) (8,812 ) (8,404 )
Other income, net 7,519 5,858 26,900 15,452
Income before income taxes and income (loss) from equity method investments 78,879 57,734 267,688 172,547
Income tax expense (16,099 ) (14,468 ) (64,482 ) (45,346 )
Income (loss) from equity method investments 2 106 977 (334 )
Net income attributable to common stockholders $ 62,782 $ 43,372 $ 204,183 $ 126,867
Net income attributable to common stockholders per share:
Basic $ 1.47 $ 1.02 $ 4.79 $ 3.00
Diluted $ 1.42 $ 1.01 $ 4.69 $ 2.97
Weighted average shares used in computing per share amounts:
Basic 42,760,745 42,434,397 42,626,588 42,286,392
Diluted 44,248,689 42,849,355 43,535,441 42,728,108
STRIDE, INC.CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
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2023
ASSETS
Current assets
Cash and cash equivalents 500,614 $ 410,807
Accounts receivable, net of allowance of 31,298 and 30,031 472,754 463,722
Inventories, net 36,748 36,716
Prepaid expenses 29,164 24,817
Marketable securities 191,672 111,918
Other current assets 14,494 17,219
Total current assets 1,245,446 1,065,199
Operating lease right-of-use assets, net 54,503 69,508
Property and equipment, net 50,856 52,332
Capitalized software, net 81,952 83,465
Capitalized curriculum development costs, net 53,232 50,787
Intangible assets, net 60,282 74,771
Goodwill 246,676 246,676
Deferred tax asset 7,200 8,776
Deposits and other assets 120,318 109,152
Total assets 1,920,465 $ 1,760,666
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
Current liabilities
Accounts payable 40,970 $ 48,854
Accrued liabilities 60,796 76,626
Accrued compensation and benefits 64,878 57,426
Deferred revenue 35,742 76,159
Current portion of finance lease liability 29,146 35,621
Current portion of operating lease liability 12,748 14,449
Total current liabilities 244,280 309,135
Long-term finance lease liability 26,452 21,278
Long-term operating lease liability 45,192 59,425
Long-term debt 414,675 413,035
Other long-term liabilities 13,841 10,497
Total liabilities 744,440 813,370
Commitments and contingencies
Stockholders’ equity
Preferred stock, par value 0.0001; 10,000,000 shares authorized; zero shares issued or outstanding
Common stock, par value 0.0001; 100,000,000 shares authorized; 48,576,164 and 48,339,048 shares issued; and 43,241,421 and 43,004,305 shares outstanding, respectively 4 4
Additional paid-in capital 720,033 695,480
Accumulated other comprehensive loss (42 ) (35 )
Retained earnings 558,512 354,329
Treasury stock of 5,334,743 shares at cost (102,482 ) (102,482 )
Total stockholders’ equity 1,176,025 947,296
Total liabilities and stockholders' equity 1,920,465 $ 1,760,666

All values are in US Dollars.

Year Ended
June 30,
2024 2023
(In **** thousands)
Cash flows from operating activities
Net income $ 204,183 $ 126,867
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization expense 109,683 110,358
Stock-based compensation expense 31,462 20,320
Deferred income taxes 2,890 (10,373 )
Provision for credit losses 22,844 9,158
Amortization of fees on debt 1,640 1,597
Noncash operating lease expense 14,246 14,728
Other 849 (1,966 )
Changes in assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable (32,056 ) (54,908 )
Inventories, prepaid expenses, deposits and other current and long-term assets (8,877 ) (19,389 )
Accounts payable (6,844 ) (11,999 )
Accrued liabilities (16,556 ) 24,132
Accrued compensation and benefits 7,394 (15,473 )
Operating lease liability (14,990 ) (12,243 )
Deferred revenue and other liabilities (37,071 ) 22,341
Net cash provided by operating activities 278,797 203,150
Cash flows from investing activities
Purchase of property and equipment (2,270 ) (4,336 )
Capitalized software development costs (40,653 ) (44,973 )
Capitalized curriculum development costs (18,666 ) (17,239 )
Sale of other investments 60
Acquisition of assets (1,409 )
Other acquisitions, loans and investments, net of distributions (5,196 ) (1,652 )
Proceeds from the maturity of marketable securities 204,487 91,879
Purchases of marketable securities (277,573 ) (140,570 )
Net cash used in investing activities (139,871 ) (118,240 )
Cash flows from financing activities
Repayments on finance lease obligations (40,919 ) (42,956 )
Payments of contingent consideration (7,024 )
Proceeds from exercise of stock options 20
Repurchase of restricted stock for income tax withholding (8,200 ) (13,541 )
Net cash used in financing activities (49,119 ) (63,501 )
Net change in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash 89,807 21,409
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, beginning of period 410,807 389,398
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, end of period $ 500,614 $ 410,807

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

To supplement our financial statements presented in accordance with GAAP, we have presented adjusted operating income (loss), EBITDA, and adjusted EBITDA, which are not presented in accordance with GAAP.

  • Adjusted operating income (loss) is defined as income (loss) from operations as adjusted for stock-based compensation and the amortization of intangible assets.
  • EBITDA is defined as income (loss) from operations as adjusted for depreciation and amortization.
  • Adjusted EBITDA is defined as income (loss) from operations as adjusted for stock-based compensation and depreciation and amortization.
  • Adjusted EBITDA and adjusted operating income (loss) exclude stock-based compensation, which consists of expenses for stock options, restricted stock, restricted stock units, and performance stock units.

Management believes that the presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures provides useful information to investors relating to our financial performance. Adjusted operating income (loss) and Adjusted EBITDA remove stock-based compensation, which is a non-cash charge that varies based on market volatility and the terms and conditions of the awards. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA remove depreciation and amortization, which can vary depending upon accounting methods and the book value of assets. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA provide a measure of corporate performance exclusive of capital structure and the method by which assets were acquired.

Our management uses these non-GAAP financial measures:

  • as additional measures of operating performance because they assist us in comparing our performance on a consistent basis; and
  • in presentations to the members of our Board of Directors to enable our Board to review the same measures used by management to compare our current operating results with corresponding prior periods.

Other companies may define these non-GAAP financial measures differently and, as a result, our use of these non-GAAP financial measures may not be directly comparable to similar non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies. Although we use these non-GAAP financial measures to assess the performance of our business, the use of non-GAAP financial measures is limited as they include and/or do not include certain items not included and/or included in the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure.

These non-GAAP financial measures should be considered in addition to, and not as a substitute for, revenues, income (loss) from operations, net income (loss) and net income (loss) per share or other related financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP. Adjusted EBITDA is not intended to be a measure of liquidity. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these non-GAAP financial measures.

A reconciliation of these non-GAAP financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures is provided below.

Fourth Quarter and Full Fiscal Year 2024

Reconciliation of Income from Operations to Adjusted Operating Income

Three Months Ended Year Ended
June 30, June 30,
2024 2023 2024 2023
(In thousands)
Income from operations $ 73,678 $ 53,946 $ 249,600 $ 165,499
Amortization of intangible assets 4,028 5,360 12,878 15,208
Stock-based compensation expense 10,190 5,124 31,462 20,320
Adjusted operating income 87,896 64,430 293,940 201,027

Reconciliation of Net Income to EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA

Three Months Ended June 30, Year Ended June 30,
2024 2023 2024 2023
(In thousands)
Net income $ 62,782 $ 43,372 $ 204,183 $ 126,867
Interest expense, net 2,318 2,070 8,812 8,404
Other income, net (7,519 ) (5,858 ) (26,900 ) (15,452 )
Income tax expense 16,099 14,468 64,482 45,346
(Income) loss from equity method investments (2 ) (106 ) (977 ) 334
Depreciation and amortization 28,219 29,702 109,683 110,358
EBITDA 101,897 83,648 359,283 275,857
Stock-based compensation expense 10,190 5,124 31,462 20,320
Adjusted EBITDA $ 112,087 $ 88,772 $ 390,745 $ 296,177