Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) Stock Crosses Above 200-Day Moving Average - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Strategic Education shares moved above their 200-day moving average on Tuesday, briefly reaching $85.83 before last trading at $84.08.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: Truist, Wall Street Zen, and Zacks lowered ratings or price targets, while BMO Capital raised its target to $91; the stock now has a consensus Hold rating and average target of $88.67.
• The company recently reported mixed quarterly results, missing EPS and revenue expectations, but it also paid a $0.60 quarterly dividend that annualizes to a 2.9% yield.

Strategic Education Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA - Get Free Report) shares crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $80.47 and traded as high as $85.83. Strategic Education shares last traded at $84.08, with a volume of 249,423 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Strategic Education from $85.00 to $80.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 27th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Strategic Education from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Zacks Research lowered Strategic Education from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Strategic Education from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Barrington Research decreased their price target on Strategic Education from $105.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $88.67.

Strategic Education Stock Performance

The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $79.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $80.47. The company has a market capitalization of $1.90 billion, a PE ratio of 14.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.50.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The health services provider reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.51 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $305.93 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $329.81 million. Strategic Education had a net margin of 10.21% and a return on equity of 8.78%. The business's quarterly revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.30 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Strategic Education Inc. will post 7.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Strategic Education Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 22nd were issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 22nd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Strategic Education's dividend payout ratio is presently 42.40%.

Insider Activity

In other Strategic Education news, Director Michael Thawley bought 665 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 24th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $72.71 per share, with a total value of $48,352.15. Following the transaction, the director owned 12,154 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $883,717.34. The trade was a 5.79% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Christa Hokenson sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $160,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 65,195 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,215,600. The trade was a 2.98% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 3.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Strategic Education

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Axiom Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Strategic Education in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in Strategic Education by 88.5% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 294 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in Strategic Education by 154.2% during 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 in the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its position in Strategic Education by 85.2% in the second 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Sankala Group LLC purchased a new stake in Strategic Education in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.