Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) Cut to Buy at Wall Street Zen

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

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

Strategic Education Stock Performance

Shares of Strategic Education stock opened at $82.47 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $80.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $80.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.22, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.56. Strategic Education has a 52 week low of $72.17 and a 52 week high of $93.45.

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

Strategic Education Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Strategic Education news, Chairman Robert S. Silberman bought 718 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $80.82 per share, with a total value of $58,028.76. Following the purchase, the chairman owned 319,870 shares in the company, valued at $25,851,893.40. This trade represents a 0.22% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Raymond Karl Mcdonnell sold 38,840 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $8,012,116.20. This trade represents a 26.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 62,420 shares of company stock worth $4,843,218. 3.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Strategic Education

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

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.