Verition Fund Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA)

Verition Fund Management LLC boosted its position in Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA - Free Report) by 80.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 15,710 shares of the health services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 7,012 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC owned 0.06% of Strategic Education worth $1,454,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in STRA. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Strategic Education during the second quarter valued at about $36,000. CWM LLC increased its holdings in Strategic Education by 2,650.0% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 330 shares of the health services provider's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 318 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in Strategic Education in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in Strategic Education in the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Strategic Education by 46.3% during the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 395 shares of the health services provider's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. 93.27% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

STRA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Strategic Education from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, October 5th. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Strategic Education from $145.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Barrington Research restated an "outperform" rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of Strategic Education in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Strategic Education has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $126.00.

Strategic Education Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of STRA stock traded down $0.69 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $98.14. The company's stock had a trading volume of 74,904 shares, compared to its average volume of 160,868. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.59. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $92.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $100.27. Strategic Education, Inc. has a one year low of $85.11 and a one year high of $123.62.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The health services provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $305.96 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $301.62 million. Strategic Education had a net margin of 10.44% and a return on equity of 7.61%. Strategic Education's quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.97 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Strategic Education, Inc. will post 4.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Strategic Education Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 9th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.45%. Strategic Education's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.71%.

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.