Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) Shares Acquired by Renaissance Technologies LLC

Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its position in Strategic Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:STRA) by 64.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 251,778 shares of the health services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 99,100 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 1.02% of Strategic Education worth $27,862,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of STRA. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System boosted its stake in Strategic Education by 83.0% in the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 11,817 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $1,230,000 after acquiring an additional 5,358 shares during the period. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC acquired a new position in Strategic Education in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,357,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new position in Strategic Education in the first quarter valued at approximately $738,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in Strategic Education by 103.6% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 253,390 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $23,406,000 after acquiring an additional 128,961 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Strategic Education by 7.4% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 369,728 shares of the health services provider’s stock valued at $40,914,000 after acquiring an additional 25,455 shares during the period. 93.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Strategic Education news, Director Viet D. Dinh acquired 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $95.59 per share, for a total transaction of $477,950.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 20,020 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,913,711.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 3.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Strategic Education from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. StockNews.com upgraded Strategic Education from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $132.25.

Strategic Education Trading Up 1.6 %

Strategic Education stock opened at $94.80 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $101.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $106.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. Strategic Education, Inc. has a 12 month low of $74.43 and a 12 month high of $123.62. The stock has a market cap of $2.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.56.

Strategic Education (NASDAQ:STRA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The health services provider reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $312.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $308.16 million. Strategic Education had a net margin of 9.84% and a return on equity of 7.47%. Strategic Education’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.82 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Strategic Education, Inc. will post 4.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Strategic Education Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th were issued a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 6th. Strategic Education’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.87%.

Strategic Education Profile

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.