Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) Earns “Outperform” Rating from Barrington Research

Barrington Research reissued their outperform rating on shares of Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) in a research note published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $135.00 price target on the health services provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on STRA. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Strategic Education from $145.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com cut shares of Strategic Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Strategic Education from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $126.00.

Strategic Education Stock Performance

Strategic Education stock opened at $99.91 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $90.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $103.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Strategic Education has a twelve month low of $85.11 and a twelve month high of $123.62. The company has a market capitalization of $2.46 billion, a PE ratio of 19.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.57.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The health services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.35. Strategic Education had a return on equity of 7.61% and a net margin of 10.44%. The company had revenue of $305.96 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $301.62 million. Strategic Education’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.97 EPS. Research analysts expect that Strategic Education will post 4.69 EPS for the current year.

Strategic Education Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.40%. Strategic Education’s dividend payout ratio is 45.71%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Strategic Education

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Strategic Education by 18.7% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 15,743 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,639,000 after acquiring an additional 2,477 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in Strategic Education by 78.3% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 7,396 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $770,000 after buying an additional 3,248 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its holdings in shares of Strategic Education by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 12,984 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,352,000 after buying an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Strategic Education by 7.3% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 4,544 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $473,000 after buying an additional 309 shares during the period. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Strategic Education by 83.0% in the 1st quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 11,817 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $1,230,000 after acquiring an additional 5,358 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.