Daniel Wayne Jackson Sells 13,000 Shares of Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) Stock

Strategic Education Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) CFO Daniel Wayne Jackson sold 13,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.37, for a total value of $1,070,810.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 100,096 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,244,907.52. This trade represents a 11.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Strategic Education Stock Down 5.0%

Shares of Strategic Education stock opened at $81.60 on Thursday. Strategic Education Inc. has a 52 week low of $72.17 and a 52 week high of $93.45. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $81.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.06, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.56.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The health services provider reported $1.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $311.46 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $322.29 million. Strategic Education had a net margin of 9.98% and a return on equity of 8.75%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.27 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Strategic Education Inc. will post 4.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Strategic Education Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 9th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Strategic Education’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.28%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Strategic Education

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Strategic Education in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in Strategic Education by 88.5% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 294 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in Strategic Education by 154.2% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 333 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its position in Strategic Education by 85.2% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 387 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Finally, Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in Strategic Education by 54.3% in the 2nd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 395 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.27% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

STRA has been the topic of a number of research reports. Zacks Research upgraded Strategic Education from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Strategic Education from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Strategic Education in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of Strategic Education in a research note on Monday, January 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Strategic Education has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $99.33.

Strategic Education Company Profile

Strategic Education, Inc is a publicly traded higher education services holding company headquartered in Herndon, Virginia. Through its primary operating subsidiaries, Strayer University and Capella University, the company delivers degree programs and professional development opportunities to working adults. Its offerings span undergraduate and graduate degrees, certificates, continuing education, and workforce training in fields such as business, technology, health services, education, and public administration.

Strayer University, with a network of physical campuses across the United States complemented by an online platform, provides associate’s through doctoral degrees designed to accommodate non-traditional students.