Insider Buying: Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) Director Acquires 600 Shares of Stock

Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) Director Michael A. Mcrobbie purchased 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $81.80 per share, with a total value of $49,080.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 6,135 shares in the company, valued at approximately $501,843. This represents a 10.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Strategic Education Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ STRA traded down $2.38 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $79.99. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 241,751 shares, compared to its average volume of 131,672. Strategic Education, Inc. has a one year low of $78.43 and a one year high of $123.62. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $95.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $94.17. The stock has a market cap of $1.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.59.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The health services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.10). Strategic Education had a net margin of 10.44% and a return on equity of 7.61%. The business had revenue of $311.46 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $315.18 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Strategic Education, Inc. will post 4.79 EPS for the current year.

Strategic Education Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.00%. Strategic Education’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.39%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

STRA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Strategic Education from $114.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Strategic Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Barrington Research decreased their price objective on Strategic Education from $135.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 27th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Strategic Education

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its position in shares of Strategic Education by 17.8% during the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 5,960 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $557,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in Strategic Education by 19.7% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 43,755 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $4,050,000 after acquiring an additional 7,203 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in Strategic Education by 1,337.4% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 8,495 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $794,000 after purchasing an additional 7,904 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Strategic Education by 76.7% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 399,144 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $36,941,000 after purchasing an additional 173,225 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Strategic Education by 11.5% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 120,628 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $11,164,000 after purchasing an additional 12,437 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.