Raymond Karl Mcdonnell Sells 31,855 Shares of Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) Stock

Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) CEO Raymond Karl Mcdonnell sold 31,855 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.83, for a total value of $3,116,374.65. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 140,281 shares in the company, valued at $13,723,690.23. This trade represents a 18.51 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Strategic Education Price Performance

Strategic Education stock opened at $80.53 on Friday. Strategic Education, Inc. has a 12 month low of $78.62 and a 12 month high of $123.62. The company has a market cap of $1.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.59. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $96.33 and its 200-day moving average is $94.74.

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

Strategic Education Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.98%. Strategic Education’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.39%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Strategic Education

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Strategic Education by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,009 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $281,000 after buying an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its holdings in Strategic Education by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 8,113 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $758,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Strategic Education by 9.8% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 2,448 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $228,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in Strategic Education by 12.8% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,938 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $179,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can increased its holdings in Strategic Education by 7.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 3,542 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $331,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

STRA has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barrington Research cut their price objective on Strategic Education from $135.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded Strategic Education from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.25.

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.