LPL Financial LLC Cuts Stock Position in Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA)

LPL Financial LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) by 9.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,543 shares of the health services provider’s stock after selling 788 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC’s holdings in Strategic Education were worth $705,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Strategic Education by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,009 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $281,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Strategic Education by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 8,113 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $758,000 after buying an additional 205 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in Strategic Education by 9.8% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 2,448 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $228,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in Strategic Education by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 46,038 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $4,301,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, Semanteon Capital Management LP grew its position in Strategic Education by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Semanteon Capital Management LP now owns 12,771 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,193,000 after acquiring an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. 93.27% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Strategic Education

In other news, Director Michael A. Mcrobbie purchased 600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $81.80 per share, for a total transaction of $49,080.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 6,135 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $501,843. The trade was a 10.84 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Raymond Karl Mcdonnell sold 31,855 shares of the company’s 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 $3,116,374.65. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 39,332 shares of company stock valued at $3,825,169 over the last three months. 3.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Strategic Education Trading Up 1.4 %

Strategic Education stock opened at $78.73 on Wednesday. Strategic Education, Inc. has a 52 week low of $74.28 and a 52 week high of $123.62. The stock has a market cap of $1.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.58. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $84.61 and a 200-day moving average of $91.23.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The health services provider reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $311.46 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $315.18 million. Strategic Education had a net margin of 10.44% and a return on equity of 7.61%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Strategic Education, Inc. will post 4.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Strategic Education Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.05%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. Strategic Education’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Strategic Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Strategic Education from $114.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $120.00 target price on shares of Strategic Education in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th.

Strategic Education 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.