Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) Price Target Cut to $120.00 by Analysts at Barrington Research

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) had its target price reduced by Barrington Research from $135.00 to $120.00 in a research note released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the health services provider’s stock.

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Strategic Education from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Strategic Education has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.25.

Strategic Education Trading Down 18.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ STRA opened at $79.80 on Thursday. Strategic Education has a 12-month low of $79.37 and a 12-month high of $123.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.59. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $96.58 and a 200 day moving average of $94.83.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last issued 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 business had revenue of $311.46 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $315.18 million. Strategic Education had a return on equity of 7.61% and a net margin of 10.44%. Sell-side analysts predict that Strategic Education will post 4.79 EPS for the current year.

Strategic Education Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.01%. Strategic Education’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.71%.

Insider Transactions at Strategic Education

In related news, CEO Raymond Karl Mcdonnell sold 31,855 shares of Strategic Education stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.83, for a total transaction of $3,116,374.65. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Daniel Wayne Jackson sold 6,025 shares of Strategic Education stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 81,756 shares in the company, valued at $7,998,189.48. This trade represents a 6.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Strategic Education

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in STRA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Strategic Education by 76.7% during the 3rd 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 during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Strategic Education during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $15,715,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in Strategic Education by 207.3% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 175,141 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $16,362,000 after purchasing an additional 118,151 shares during the period. Barclays PLC raised its stake in Strategic Education by 202.3% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 114,765 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $10,720,000 after purchasing an additional 76,804 shares during the period. Finally, Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. increased its stake in Strategic Education by 12.9% in the 4th quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. now owns 618,286 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $57,760,000 after acquiring an additional 70,743 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.27% of the company’s stock.

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.