Barrington Research Reiterates Outperform Rating for Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA)

Key Points

• Barrington Research has reiterated an "outperform" rating for Strategic Education (NASDAQ: STRA) with a price target of $105.00, indicating a potential upside of 27.78% from the current stock price.
• Strategic Education reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for its most recent quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.42, with revenue of $321.47 million.
• Institutional investors currently hold 93.27% of Strategic Education's stock, reflecting strong institutional interest in the company.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "outperform" rating reissued by research analysts at Barrington Research in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $105.00 price objective on the health services provider's stock. Barrington Research's target price points to a potential upside of 27.78% from the company's current price.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on STRA. Wall Street Zen upgraded Strategic Education from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, September 13th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Strategic Education in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Strategic Education in a report on Monday, September 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Strategic Education currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $99.33.

Strategic Education Price Performance

Shares of Strategic Education stock traded up $0.85 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $82.17. 20,480 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 168,459. The firm has a market cap of $1.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.06, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.67. Strategic Education has a 52 week low of $72.25 and a 52 week high of $104.51. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $81.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $82.51.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The health services provider reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.10. Strategic Education had a return on equity of 7.52% and a net margin of 9.27%.The firm had revenue of $321.47 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $322.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.33 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Strategic Education will post 4.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Daniel Wayne Jackson purchased 1,900 shares of Strategic Education stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 29th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $81.50 per share, with a total value of $154,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 104,136 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,487,084. This represents a 1.86% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director G Thomas Waite III sold 700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.69, for a total value of $57,183.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 15,926 shares in the company, valued at $1,300,994.94. This represents a 4.21% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Strategic Education

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new stake in Strategic Education during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Strategic Education by 33.5% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 13,329 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $1,146,000 after purchasing an additional 3,345 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Strategic Education in the 3rd quarter valued at $847,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its holdings in shares of Strategic Education by 9.9% in the 3rd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 19,063 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $1,640,000 after purchasing an additional 1,722 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings 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 valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.27% of the company's stock.

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.

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