Wall Street Zen Downgrades Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) to Buy

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

STRA has been the topic of several other reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Strategic Education in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Truist Financial cut Strategic Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price target for the company from $95.00 to $85.00 in a report on Tuesday. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Strategic Education in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Strategic Education from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $92.67.

Strategic Education Stock Performance

STRA opened at $81.46 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.03, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a fifty day moving average of $80.91 and a 200 day moving average of $80.86. Strategic Education has a fifty-two week low of $72.17 and a fifty-two week high of $93.45.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The health services provider reported $1.74 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.27. Strategic Education had a net margin of 9.98% and a return on equity of 8.75%. The business had revenue of $311.46 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $322.29 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.27 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Strategic Education will post 4.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Strategic Education

In related news, CFO Daniel Wayne Jackson sold 13,000 shares of Strategic Education stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.37, for a total value of $1,070,810.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 100,096 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,244,907.52. This trade represents a 11.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Raymond Karl Mcdonnell sold 38,840 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.35, for a total value of $2,926,594.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 106,332 shares in the company, valued at $8,012,116.20. The trade was a 26.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 62,420 shares of company stock worth $4,843,218 in the last 90 days. 3.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Strategic Education

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. bought a new stake in Strategic Education in the third quarter worth $25,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in shares of Strategic Education by 88.5% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 294 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Strategic Education by 154.2% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 333 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Strategic Education by 85.2% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 387 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Finally, Sankala Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Strategic Education during the 4th quarter worth about $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.