Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) Shares Down 4.6% - Time to Sell?

Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA - Get Free Report)'s stock price dropped 4.6% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $85.56 and last traded at $85.34. Approximately 26,688 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 154,783 shares. The stock had previously closed at $89.41.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Truist Financial set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Strategic Education in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Strategic Education from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Barrington Research restated an "outperform" rating and set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Strategic Education in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Strategic Education from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th.

Strategic Education Price Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average price of $84.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $90.45. The company has a market capitalization of $2.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.54.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The health services provider reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.29. Strategic Education had a return on equity of 7.61% and a net margin of 10.44%. The firm had revenue of $303.59 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $300.67 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.11 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research 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, June 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 23rd were given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 23rd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. Strategic Education's dividend payout ratio is presently 51.28%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Robert R. Grusky sold 1,494 shares of Strategic Education stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.27, for a total transaction of $119,923.38. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,349 shares in the company, valued at $910,984.23. The trade was a 11.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 3.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in STRA. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Strategic Education by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,793,685 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $260,986,000 after purchasing an additional 45,421 shares during the period. Marshfield Associates boosted its stake in Strategic Education by 0.7% during the first quarter. Marshfield Associates now owns 1,849,034 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $155,245,000 after buying an additional 12,543 shares in the last quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. grew its holdings in Strategic Education by 17.3% during the first quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 1,475,831 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $123,911,000 after acquiring an additional 217,151 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in Strategic Education by 9.5% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 645,235 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $54,174,000 after acquiring an additional 56,182 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. raised its position in Strategic Education by 12.9% in the fourth quarter. Van Lanschot Kempen Investment Management N.V. now owns 618,286 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $57,760,000 after acquiring an additional 70,743 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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