Oct 29 (Reuters) - Stride LRN.N lost about half of its market value on Wednesday after the edutech company issued a dour annual revenue forecast, citing struggles to enroll new students on its platform.

U.S.-based Stride's shares plummeted 50% to $75.98, putting them also on track for their biggest one-day loss on record.

Late on Tuesday, the company forecast revenue in the range of $2.48 billion to $2.55 billion for the fiscal year 2026. Analysts on average were expecting $2.59 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.

CEO James Rhyu attributed the weak forecast to lower student enrollments as the company grapples with implementation challenges from a recent upgrade to its learning platforms.

"We heard from our customers that their engagement with these platforms detracted from their overall experience. This poor customer experience has resulted in some higher withdrawal rates and lower conversion rates than we expected," Rhyu said on a post-earnings call.

Barrington Research and BMO Capital Markets lowered their price targets on shares of the company, which currently has a market value of about $3 billion.

BMO also downgraded the stock to "market perform" from "outperform", saying "we may have to wait until next fall for another catalyst."

(Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)

((johann.mcherian@thomsonreuters.com;))