Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) Announces Earnings Results

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The health services provider reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.51, reports. Strategic Education had a return on equity of 6.78% and a net margin of 8.70%. The firm had revenue of $290.25 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $274.02 million.

Strategic Education Stock Performance

NASDAQ:STRA opened at $121.06 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.69, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $101.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $94.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Strategic Education has a 1-year low of $64.53 and a 1-year high of $121.29.

Strategic Education Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, May 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.98%. Strategic Education’s payout ratio is currently 56.87%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on STRA shares. StockNews.com raised Strategic Education from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Strategic Education from $103.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Bank of America raised their price objective on Strategic Education from $104.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Barrington Research raised their price objective on Strategic Education from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, TheStreet raised Strategic Education from a “c+” rating to a “b” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $131.75.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Strategic Education news, CEO Raymond Karl Mcdonnell sold 12,820 shares of Strategic Education stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.99, for a total value of $1,230,591.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 161,359 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,488,850.41. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Strategic Education news, CFO Daniel Wayne Jackson sold 3,713 shares of Strategic Education stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.95, for a total value of $356,262.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 71,770 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,886,331.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Raymond Karl Mcdonnell sold 12,820 shares of Strategic Education stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.99, for a total value of $1,230,591.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 161,359 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,488,850.41. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Strategic Education

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Strategic Education by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 11,912 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,240,000 after purchasing an additional 511 shares during the last quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of Strategic Education in the 1st quarter valued at $449,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Strategic Education by 103.6% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 253,390 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $23,406,000 after purchasing an additional 128,961 shares during the last quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Strategic Education by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 1,137,961 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $105,113,000 after purchasing an additional 23,794 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TFO Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Strategic Education by 118,000.0% in the 4th quarter. TFO Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,181 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $109,000 after purchasing an additional 1,180 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.27% of the company’s stock.

Strategic Education Company Profile

Strategic Education, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides education services through campus-based and online post-secondary education, and programs to develop job-ready skills. The company operates through U.S. Higher Education, Australia/New Zealand, and Education Technology Services segments. It operates Strayer University that offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs in business, criminal justice, education, health services, information technology, and public administration at physical campuses located in the eastern United States, as well as through online; non-degree web and mobile application development courses through Hackbright Academy and Devmountain; and MBA online through its Jack Welch Management Institute.