Bastion Asset Management Inc. Purchases 34,048 Shares of Strategic Education Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA)

Key Points

• Bastion Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Strategic Education Inc. by 286.9% in Q1, owning 45,914 shares after purchasing an additional 34,048 shares.
• Strategic Education reported a quarterly EPS of $1.30, exceeding the estimate of $1.01, with revenue of $303.59 million, up 4.6% from the previous year.
• The company paid a quarterly dividend of $0.60, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 3.06% and a payout ratio of 51.28%.

Bastion Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Strategic Education Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA - Free Report) by 286.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,914 shares of the health services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 34,048 shares during the quarter. Strategic Education comprises about 2.1% of Bastion Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Bastion Asset Management Inc. owned about 0.19% of Strategic Education worth $3,773,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Strategic Education by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 127,684 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $10,720,000 after buying an additional 3,256 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Strategic Education by 6.6% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 423,549 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $35,561,000 after acquiring an additional 26,284 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Strategic Education in the first quarter valued at approximately $727,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Strategic Education in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $821,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Strategic Education by 105,000.0% during the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 3,153 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 3,150 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.27% of the company's stock.

Strategic Education Price Performance

STRA traded up $0.50 on Monday, hitting $78.90. 213,720 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 169,551. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.86, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.52. Strategic Education Inc. has a 12 month low of $74.28 and a 12 month high of $121.60. The business has a 50-day moving average of $84.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $86.96.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The health services provider reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.29. Strategic Education had a net margin of 9.14% and a return on equity of 7.29%. The business had revenue of $303.59 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $300.67 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.11 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Strategic Education Inc. will post 4.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Strategic Education Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.04%. Strategic Education's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Strategic Education from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Strategic Education in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Strategic Education from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $105.00 target price on shares of Strategic Education in a report on Thursday, April 24th.

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.