Strategic Education Inc (STRA) Reports 8.7% Revenue Increase in Q3 2023

Net income triples as all three segments show strong performance

Summary
  • Strategic Education Inc (STRA) reported an 8.7% increase in revenue for Q3 2023, reaching $285.9 million.
  • Net income tripled to $18.5 million compared to $6.1 million in the same period in 2022.
  • U.S. Higher Education segment saw a 9.9% increase in student enrollment.
  • The company declared a regular, quarterly cash dividend of $0.60 per share of common stock.
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Strategic Education Inc (STRA, Financial) announced its financial results for Q3 2023 on November 2, 2023. The company reported a strong performance across all three segments, with an 8.7% increase in revenue, reaching $285.9 million compared to $263.1 million in the same period in 2022. The company's net income tripled to $18.5 million, up from $6.1 million in Q3 2022.

Financial Highlights

Strategic Education Inc (STRA, Financial) reported an income from operations of $25.6 million or 9.0% of revenue, compared to $7.8 million or 3.0% of revenue for the same period in 2022. The company's adjusted income from operations, a non-GAAP financial measure, was $32.6 million compared to $12.2 million for the same period in 2022. The adjusted operating income margin was 11.4% compared to 4.6% for the same period in 2022.

Diluted earnings per share was $0.77 compared to $0.25 for the same period in 2022. Adjusted diluted earnings per share, a non-GAAP financial measure, increased to $0.97 from $0.33 for the same period in 2022.

Segment Highlights

The U.S. Higher Education segment saw a 9.9% increase in student enrollment, reaching 82,548 compared to 75,144 for the same period in 2022. Revenue for this segment increased 8.8% to $201.8 million in the third quarter of 2023 compared to $185.5 million for the same period in 2022.

The Education Technology Services segment reported a 26.7% increase in revenue to $20.8 million in the third quarter of 2023 compared to $16.4 million for the same period in 2022. This was driven by growth in Sophia Learning subscriptions and employer affiliated enrollment.

The Australia/New Zealand segment reported a 3.4% increase in revenue to $63.3 million in the third quarter of 2023 compared to $61.2 million for the same period in 2022, driven by higher revenue-per-student.

Balance Sheet and Cash Flow

As of September 30, 2023, Strategic Education Inc (STRA, Financial) had cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities of $198.6 million. During the third quarter, the company repaid $40 million of outstanding debt on its revolving credit facility, leaving $61.2 million outstanding on the facility. For the first nine months of 2023, cash provided by operations was $87.2 million compared to $124.7 million for the same period in 2022.

The company also announced that it declared a regular, quarterly cash dividend of $0.60 per share of common stock. This dividend will be paid on December 4, 2023 to shareholders of record as of November 27, 2023.

Explore the complete 8-K earnings release (here) from Strategic Education Inc for further details.