DeVry (DV) runs a network of for-profit, career-focused universities with campuses across the United States and elsewhere, reaching hundreds of thousands of students seeking career-oriented degrees. And students are pouring in. Total revenue at DeVry for the third quarter ending March 31 rose 12 percent on year to $562.7 million. Net income rose by 14 percent to $92.9 million.

The company has established partnerships with jobs web site CareerBuilder.com to provide graduates with career services, including access to a personal career coaches, and has gained new accreditations, including certification from the American Veterinary Medical Association at the company's Ross University.

"Our diversification strategy and focus on enhancing academic quality to support long-term growth continue to serve us well," DeVry President and CEO Daniel Hamburger says in the school’s earnings statement.

"Total enrollment growth across our family of degree-granting schools was 7.6 percent in the spring. While Carrington and DeVry University undergraduate new student enrollments experienced softness during this period, strong growth within Chamberlain, Keller and DeVry Brasil helped to offset the weakness. This demonstrates the value of our diversification strategy and allows DeVry to continue to make investments in the quality of its academic programs and services," Hamburger adds, referring to several schools operated by DeVry.

For-profit schools have been battling regulations that could threaten their bottom line. New regulations, such as the “gainful employment rule,” threaten to cut access to federal money to universities if too many students graduate heavily indebted.

Eds vs. feds

The idea is to prevent students from racking up hefty, federally backed student loans and then find themselves unable to find work and pay those loans back. The new regulations were watered down a bit, which analysts saw as a positive for for-profit schools such as DeVry, or at least as something that could have been worse.

Credit Suisse reiterated a neutral rating on DeVry and raised the target price on company shares to $48 from $42. Morgan Stanley assigned the company an overweight rating.