Why Coursera (COUR) stock is down today. Adam hejl /. July 30, 2026 What happened? Shares of online learning platform Coursera (NYSE:COUR) fell 18% in the afternoon session after second-quarter 2026 earnings report presented a mixed financial picture that left investors concerned about its underlying health. The company surpassed Wall Street's expectations on revenue and earnings, with sales growing nearly 60% year-over-year to $298.6 million. Coursera also significantly raised its revenue forecast for the full year. However, this positive news was overshadowed by several red flags. The company's operating margin deteriorated sharply to -28.4% from -8.1% in the same quarter last year, and free cash flow swung to a negative $32.6 million. Additionally, its EBITDA guidance for the upcoming third quarter came in slightly below analysts' estimates. These factors signaled growing pressure on profitability and cash generation, leading investors to sell off the stock despite the strong top-line results. The stock market overreacts to news, and big price drops can present good opportunities to buy high-quality stocks. Is now the time to buy Coursera? Access our full analysis report here, it's free. What is the market telling us. Coursera's shares are very volatile and have had 27 moves greater than 5% over the last year. But moves this big are rare even for Coursera and indicate this news significantly impacted the market's perception of the business. The biggest move we wrote about over the last year was 3 months ago when the stock dropped 13.7% on the news that the company reported disappointing first-quarter 2026 results and provided a weak forecast for the upcoming quarter. For the first quarter, Coursera's revenue grew 9.1% year-over-year to $195.7 million, which was in line with Wall Street's expectations. However, the company's adjusted earnings per share of $0.07 fell short of analyst estimates by 15.3%. Adding to investor concerns, the company's guidance for the second quarter came in below expectations, with management projecting revenue of approximately $198 million, about 1.3% below the consensus forecast. While Coursera reaffirmed its full-year revenue outlook and provided an upbeat full-year profit forecast, the disappointing near-term guidance appeared to be the primary driver for the stock's decline. Coursera is down 25.9% since the beginning of the year, and at $5.25 per share, it is trading 58.7% below its 52-week high of $12.70 from August 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Coursera's shares 5 years ago would now be looking at only $147.37. ONE MORE THING: The $21 AI Application Stock Wall Street Forgot. While Wall Street obsesses over who's building AI, one company is already using it to print money. And nobody's paying attention. AI chip stocks trade at ridiculous valuations. This company processes a trillion consumer signals monthly using AI and trades at a third of the price. The gap won't last. The institutions will figure it out. You need to see this first. Read the FREE Report Before They Notice.

Coursera's (NYSE:COUR) Q2 CY2026: beats on revenue. Posted on July 30, 2026 By News Team Online learning platform Coursera (NYSE:COUR) reported Q2 CY2026 results beating Wall Street's revenue expectations, with sales up 59.6% year on year to $298.6 million. The company expects next quarter's revenue to be around $368 million, close to analysts' estimates. Its non-GAAP profit of $0.17 per share was 54.5% above analysts' consensus estimates. "Q2 marked an important milestone in Coursera's next chapter of value creation. We closed the Udemy transaction, began operating as a combined company, and now expect to achieve at least $85 million of annual run-rate net synergies by the end of 2026, positioning us to finish the year with a meaningfully stronger financial profile," said Greg Hart, Coursera CEO. Company overview. Founded by two Stanford University computer science professors, Coursera (NYSE:COUR) is an online learning platform that offers courses, specializations, and degrees from top universities and organizations around the world. Revenue growth. Reviewing a company's long-term sales performance reveals insights into its quality. Any business can put up a good quarter or two, but many enduring ones grow for years. Luckily, Coursera's sales grew at a solid 15.1% compounded annual growth rate over the last three years. Its growth beat the average consumer internet company and shows its offerings resonate with customers, a helpful starting point for its analysis. This quarter, Coursera reported magnificent year-on-year revenue growth of 59.6%, and its $298.6 million of revenue beat Wall Street's estimates by 1.7%. Company management is currently guiding for a 89.5% year-on-year increase in sales next quarter. Looking further ahead, sell-side analysts expect revenue to grow 68.2% over the next 12 months, an acceleration versus the last three years. This projection is eye-popping and suggests its newer products and services will fuel better top-line performance. ONE MORE THING: 3 Hidden Platforms Growing 3X Faster than Amazon, Google, and PayPal. Amazon, Google, and Meta all followed the same playbook: Dominate an ignored market. Build an unbeatable moat. Scale until you're unstoppable. Cash is king. Free cash flow isn't a prominently featured metric in company financials and earnings releases, but Equity Insider think it's telling because it accounts for all operating and capital expenses, making it tough to manipulate. Cash is king. Coursera has shown mediocre cash profitability relative to peers over the last two years, giving the company fewer opportunities to return capital to shareholders. Its free cash flow margin averaged 4.5%, below what Equity Insider'd expect for a consumer internet business. The divergence from its good EBITDA margin stems from its capital-intensive business model, which requires Coursera to make large cash investments in working capital (i.e., stocking inventories) and capital expenditures (i.e., building new facilities). Taking a step back, an encouraging sign is that Coursera's margin expanded by 2.6 percentage points over the last few years. Equity Insider has no doubt shareholders would like to continue seeing its cash conversion rise as it gives the company more optionality. Coursera burned through $32.6 million of cash in Q2, equivalent to a negative 10.9% margin. The company's cash flow turned negative after being positive in the same quarter last year, but Equity Insider wouldn't read too much into the short term because investment needs can be seasonal, causing temporary swings. Long-term trends are more important. Key takeaways from Coursera's Q2 results. Equity Insider were impressed by how significantly Coursera blew past analysts' EBITDA expectations this quarter. Equity Insider were also happy its revenue outperformed Wall Street's estimates. On the other hand, its EBITDA guidance for next quarter slightly missed. Overall, this print had some key positives. Investors were likely hoping for more, and shares traded down 3.6% to $5.96 immediately after reporting. Is Coursera an attractive investment opportunity right now? The latest quarter does matter, but not nearly as much as longer-term fundamentals and valuation, when deciding if the stock is a buy.

Coursera reported a second-quarter loss of $80.4 million, or 34 cents per share. However, adjusted earnings came to 17 cents per share, beating Wall Street's expectation of 11 cents per share. The online learning platform generated revenue of $298.6 million, surpassing analyst forecasts of $293.9 million. For the current quarter ending in September, Coursera expects revenue between $364 million and $372 million. The company projects full-year revenue ranging from $1.22 billion to $1.25 billion. The Mountain View, California-based firm's results exceeded expectations across key metrics despite posting a net loss.