Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) Price Target Cut to $97.00 by Analysts at BMO Capital Markets

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) had its target price cut by BMO Capital Markets from $114.00 to $97.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the health services provider’s stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on STRA. StockNews.com raised shares of Strategic Education from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Barrington Research lowered their target price on Strategic Education from $135.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $115.25.

Strategic Education Stock Up 0.8 %

NASDAQ STRA opened at $81.21 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $2.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.59. Strategic Education has a twelve month low of $78.43 and a twelve month high of $123.62. The business’s fifty day moving average is $96.11 and its 200 day moving average is $94.65.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The health services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $311.46 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $315.18 million. Strategic Education had a return on equity of 7.61% and a net margin of 10.44%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Strategic Education will post 4.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Strategic Education Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.96%. Strategic Education’s payout ratio is 51.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Daniel Wayne Jackson sold 6,025 shares of Strategic Education stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.83, for a total value of $589,425.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 81,756 shares in the company, valued at $7,998,189.48. The trade was a 6.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Raymond Karl Mcdonnell sold 31,855 shares of Strategic Education stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.83, for a total transaction of $3,116,374.65. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 140,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,723,690.23. This trade represents a 18.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.10% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Strategic Education

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new stake in Strategic Education during the 3rd quarter valued at $55,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its stake in Strategic Education by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 13,911 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,287,000 after purchasing an additional 1,036 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in shares of Strategic Education by 2.5% during the third quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 37,830 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $3,501,000 after acquiring an additional 932 shares in the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its position in shares of Strategic Education by 12.8% during the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,938 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $179,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amalgamated Bank increased its position in shares of Strategic Education by 5.3% during the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 7,086 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $656,000 after acquiring an additional 354 shares in the last quarter. 93.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Strategic Education

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.