Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) Trading Down 8.1% – Time to Sell?

Shares of Strategic Education Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) dropped 8.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $76.50 and last traded at $77.3050. Approximately 412,111 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 47% from the average daily volume of 280,593 shares. The stock had previously closed at $84.08.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of Strategic Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Truist Financial reduced their price target on Strategic Education from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 27th. Wall Street Zen lowered Strategic Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Strategic Education in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Barrington Research cut their price objective on Strategic Education from $105.00 to $95.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $88.67.

Strategic Education Trading Down 8.3%

The company has a market cap of $1.74 billion, a PE ratio of 13.55, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $79.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $80.47.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The health services provider reported $1.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.51 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $305.93 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $329.81 million. Strategic Education had a return on equity of 8.78% and a net margin of 10.21%.Strategic Education’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.30 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Strategic Education Inc. will post 7.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Strategic Education Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 22nd. Strategic Education’s payout ratio is 42.40%.

Insider Transactions at Strategic Education

In other Strategic Education news, Director Michael Thawley purchased 665 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 24th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $72.71 per share, for a total transaction of $48,352.15. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 12,154 shares in the company, valued at $883,717.34. The trade was a 5.79% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Christa Hokenson sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $160,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 65,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,215,600. The trade was a 2.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 3.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Strategic Education

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in shares of Strategic Education by 88.5% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 294 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Strategic Education during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in Strategic Education by 154.2% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 333 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its stake in Strategic Education by 85.2% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 387 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sankala Group LLC bought a new stake in Strategic Education in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. 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.