Miller Global Investments LLC Invests $526,000 in Strategic Education Inc. $STRA

Miller Global Investments LLC acquired a new position in Strategic Education Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 6,553 shares of the health services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $526,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Bastion Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Strategic Education during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,175,000. Lightrock Netherlands B.V. increased its holdings in shares of Strategic Education by 155.7% in the 3rd quarter. Lightrock Netherlands B.V. now owns 234,719 shares of the health services provider’s stock worth $20,188,000 after buying an additional 142,915 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd raised its position in shares of Strategic Education by 158.3% during the 3rd quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 25,438 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $2,188,000 after buying an additional 15,588 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in shares of Strategic Education by 56.8% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 262,035 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $22,307,000 after buying an additional 94,955 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Summit Global Investments bought a new stake in shares of Strategic Education during the 2nd quarter worth $325,000. 93.27% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Strategic Education Stock Performance

NASDAQ:STRA opened at $80.99 on Friday. Strategic Education Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $72.17 and a fifty-two week high of $93.45. The firm has a market cap of $1.83 billion, a PE ratio of 14.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.56. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $81.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $80.86.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The health services provider reported $1.74 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $311.46 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $322.29 million. Strategic Education had a net margin of 9.98% and a return on equity of 8.75%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.27 EPS. Research analysts predict that Strategic Education Inc. will post 4.79 EPS for the current year.

Strategic Education Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th were paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 9th. Strategic Education’s dividend payout ratio is 44.28%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Daniel Wayne Jackson sold 13,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.37, for a total transaction of $1,070,810.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 100,096 shares in the company, valued at $8,244,907.52. The trade was a 11.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Chairman Robert S. Silberman purchased 718 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $80.82 per share, with a total value of $58,028.76. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 319,870 shares in the company, valued at $25,851,893.40. The trade was a 0.22% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 59,438 shares of company stock valued at $4,605,016. Company insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on STRA. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Strategic Education from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Strategic Education in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised Strategic Education from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Strategic Education in a report on Monday, January 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Strategic Education currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $99.33.

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.