JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has $10.88 Million Stake in Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased its stake in Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA - Free Report) by 70.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 116,472 shares of the health services provider's stock after selling 282,672 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned 0.47% of Strategic Education worth $10,881,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Strategic Education in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Strategic Education in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Strategic Education by 394.8% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 480 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 383 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Strategic Education during the fourth quarter worth $96,000. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its position in Strategic Education by 53.3% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,044 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $98,000 after acquiring an additional 363 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.27% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on STRA. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Strategic Education from $114.00 to $97.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Strategic Education in a report on Tuesday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Strategic Education from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Strategic Education news, CFO Daniel Wayne Jackson sold 6,025 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.83, for a total value of $589,425.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 81,756 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,998,189.48. The trade was a 6.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Raymond Karl Mcdonnell sold 31,855 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.83, for a total transaction of $3,116,374.65. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 140,281 shares in the company, valued at $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. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 39,332 shares of company stock valued at $3,825,169. Insiders own 3.30% of the company's stock.

Strategic Education Price Performance

STRA stock traded up $1.40 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $80.07. 154,754 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 152,011. Strategic Education, Inc. has a one year low of $74.28 and a one year high of $123.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.58. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $85.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $91.37.

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

Strategic Education Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. Strategic Education's payout ratio is 51.39%.

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.