Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) Downgraded to Buy Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Saturday.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on STRA. Zacks Research raised Strategic Education from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Truist Financial lowered Strategic Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $95.00 to $85.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Strategic Education in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price target on shares of Strategic Education in a report on Monday, January 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $92.67.

Strategic Education Stock Performance

NASDAQ STRA opened at $81.46 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $80.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.85. Strategic Education has a one year low of $72.17 and a one year high of $93.45. The firm has a market cap of $1.84 billion, a PE ratio of 15.03, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.56.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The health services provider reported $1.74 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.27. Strategic Education had a net margin of 9.98% and a return on equity of 8.75%. The business had revenue of $311.46 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $322.29 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.27 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Strategic Education will post 4.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Strategic Education Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 9th were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 9th. Strategic Education’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.28%.

Insider Activity

In other Strategic Education news, Chairman Robert S. Silberman acquired 718 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $80.82 per share, with a total value of $58,028.76. Following the acquisition, the chairman owned 319,870 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,851,893.40. This trade represents a 0.22% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, General Counsel Lizette Benedi Herraiz sold 2,982 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.88, for a total value of $238,202.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 55,580 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,439,730.40. The trade was a 5.09% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 62,420 shares of company stock worth $4,843,218 in the last three months. 3.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Strategic Education

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its holdings in Strategic Education by 305.3% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 616 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 464 shares in the last quarter. Meadowbrook Advisors Group LLC acquired a new position in Strategic Education during the fourth quarter worth about $678,000. Sankala Group LLC purchased a new position in Strategic Education in the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Strategic Education in the fourth quarter valued at about $5,059,000. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Strategic Education by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 28,385 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $2,276,000 after acquiring an additional 2,785 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.27% of the company’s stock.

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.