Teacher Retirement System of Texas Buys 368 Shares of Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its stake in Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,772 shares of the health services provider’s stock after buying an additional 368 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned about 0.08% of Strategic Education worth $1,847,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Strategic Education in the third quarter valued at approximately $702,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Strategic Education by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 313,727 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $29,035,000 after purchasing an additional 20,389 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd increased its position in shares of Strategic Education by 4.2% during the third quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 7,676 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $710,000 after buying an additional 306 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its stake in Strategic Education by 4.5% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 9,660 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $894,000 after buying an additional 418 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in Strategic Education in the third quarter valued at $1,501,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.27% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Strategic Education

In related news, CEO Raymond Karl Mcdonnell sold 31,855 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 140,281 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,723,690.23. This represents a 18.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Daniel Wayne Jackson sold 6,025 shares of the 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 directly owns 81,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,998,189.48. The trade was a 6.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 39,332 shares of company stock worth $3,825,169. 3.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Strategic Education Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ STRA opened at $86.27 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $91.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $92.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.59. Strategic Education, Inc. has a 1-year low of $78.43 and a 1-year high of $123.62.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The health services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.37 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $311.46 million during 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Strategic Education, Inc. will post 4.79 EPS for the current year.

Strategic Education Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. Strategic Education’s payout ratio is currently 51.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on STRA shares. BMO Capital Markets decreased 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 cut Strategic Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Barrington Research dropped their price target on Strategic Education from $135.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th.

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.