Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) Upgraded to Buy by Truist Financial

Truist Financial upgraded shares of Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Wednesday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have $125.00 target price on the health services provider’s stock, up from their previous target price of $110.00.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on STRA. TheStreet raised shares of Strategic Education from a c+ rating to a b rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Strategic Education from $104.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Barrington Research reissued an outperform rating and set a $125.00 price objective on shares of Strategic Education in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Strategic Education from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Strategic Education from $103.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $124.25.

Strategic Education Stock Performance

Strategic Education stock opened at $98.07 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $100.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $92.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.57. Strategic Education has a fifty-two week low of $64.53 and a fifty-two week high of $111.95. The company has a market capitalization of $2.41 billion, a PE ratio of 33.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.50.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The health services provider reported $1.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.34. Strategic Education had a net margin of 6.16% and a return on equity of 5.52%. The firm had revenue of $302.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $297.48 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.78 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Strategic Education will post 4.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Strategic Education Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.45%. Strategic Education’s payout ratio is currently 82.76%.

Insider Transactions at Strategic Education

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

Institutional Trading of Strategic Education

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of STRA. Guidance Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Strategic Education during the 1st quarter valued at about $449,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Strategic Education by 103.6% during 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 acquiring an additional 128,961 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in Strategic Education by 7.8% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 56,809 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $5,249,000 after acquiring an additional 4,097 shares in the last quarter. Virtus Fund Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Strategic Education during the 4th quarter valued at about $65,000. Finally, Virtus Investment Advisers Inc. purchased a new stake in Strategic Education during the 4th quarter valued at about $973,000. Hedge funds and other 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.