Empowered Funds LLC Makes New Investment in Strategic Education Inc. $STRA

Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in Strategic Education Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 79,710 shares of the health services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $6,107,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of STRA. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in Strategic Education by 88.5% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 294 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Axiom Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Strategic Education during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings 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 during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Strategic Education by 85.2% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 387 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sankala Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Strategic Education during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on STRA shares. Barrington Research set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Strategic Education in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Strategic Education from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Strategic Education in a report on Friday, July 17th. Zacks Research lowered Strategic Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Strategic Education from $86.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $95.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Christa Hokenson sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $160,000.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 65,195 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,215,600. This represents a 2.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 3.60% of the company’s stock.

Strategic Education Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:STRA opened at $84.64 on Monday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $80.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $80.07. Strategic Education Inc. has a twelve month low of $69.70 and a twelve month high of $89.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.88 billion, a PE ratio of 14.11, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.49.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The health services provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.80 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $321.60 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $327.55 million. Strategic Education had a net margin of 10.46% and a return on equity of 8.98%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.54 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Strategic Education Inc. will post 7.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Strategic Education Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 14th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. Strategic Education’s payout ratio is currently 40.00%.

Strategic Education Company Profile

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.