Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Shares of Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) gapped down before the market opened on Thursday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $97.94, but opened at $88.06. Strategic Education shares last traded at $83.92, with a volume of 6,506 shares changing hands.

The health services provider reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $315.18 million.

Strategic Education Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.98%. Strategic Education’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on STRA. Barrington Research cut their price objective on Strategic Education from $135.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Strategic Education from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $122.25.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Trading of Strategic Education

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in Strategic Education by 19.7% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 43,755 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $4,050,000 after acquiring an additional 7,203 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Strategic Education by 76.7% in 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. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Strategic Education by 11.5% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 120,628 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $11,164,000 after purchasing an additional 12,437 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Strategic Education during the 3rd quarter valued at $702,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised 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 worth $794,000 after buying an additional 7,904 shares during the last quarter. 93.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Strategic Education Stock Up 0.9 %

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $96.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $94.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.59.

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.