Strategic Education Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) Receives $87.00 Average PT from Analysts

Shares of Strategic Education Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $87.00.

A number of analysts recently commented on STRA shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Strategic Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, April 26th. Zacks Research raised shares of Strategic Education from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Strategic Education from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 27th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Strategic Education in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Strategic Education from $95.00 to $86.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 27th.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Raymond Karl Mcdonnell sold 38,840 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.35, for a total transaction of $2,926,594.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 106,332 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,012,116.20. The trade was a 26.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Michael Thawley acquired 665 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $72.71 per share, for a total transaction of $48,352.15. Following the acquisition, the director owned 12,154 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $883,717.34. This represents a 5.79% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have sold 62,420 shares of company stock valued at $4,843,218 in the last quarter. Insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Strategic Education

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of STRA. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in shares of Strategic Education by 62,355.4% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,467,702 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $117,710,000 after purchasing an additional 1,465,352 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Strategic Education by 188.6% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 245,296 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $20,882,000 after purchasing an additional 160,303 shares in the last quarter. Lightrock Netherlands B.V. lifted its holdings in shares of Strategic Education by 155.7% in the third quarter. Lightrock Netherlands B.V. now owns 234,719 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $20,188,000 after purchasing an additional 142,915 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Strategic Education by 115.4% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 216,117 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $18,588,000 after purchasing an additional 115,801 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Strategic Education in the second quarter valued at about $9,615,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.27% of the company’s stock.

Strategic Education Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:STRA opened at $80.04 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $1.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.14, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.52. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $80.58 and its 200-day simple moving average is $80.32. Strategic Education has a fifty-two week low of $69.70 and a fifty-two week high of $93.45.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The health services provider reported $1.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.51 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $305.93 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $329.81 million. Strategic Education had a net margin of 10.21% and a return on equity of 8.78%. The firm’s revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.30 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Strategic Education will post 7.2 EPS for the current year.

Strategic Education Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Friday, May 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Strategic Education’s payout ratio is currently 42.40%.

About Strategic Education

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.