Strategic Education (STRA) Q2 2026 Earnings Report

The call conveyed solid operating momentum and margin expansion driven by Education Technology Services and U.S. Higher Education (notably employer-affiliated and healthcare enrollment), strong cash flow and share repurchases, and continued scale at Sophia and Workforce Edge. That said, a material $13 million Australia labor charge, ANZ enrollment declines and visa processing headwinds, and academic integrity/AI concerns at Sophia are notable near-term challenges. Management expects margin improvement and has mitigation plans for ANZ instructional costs, but revenue could be pressured in 2026 relative to the notional model.

Management provided directional (not formal) guidance that full‑year revenue per student should be roughly flat, full‑year revenue could finish slightly below its notional 5% model but is expected to revert to about 5% growth over the next 12 months, and the company remains committed to at least 200 basis points of adjusted operating income (EBIT) margin expansion (and expects to potentially outperform that target even after taking an approximately $13M reserve/charge in Australia); they also expect Australia to return to growth in 2027 and anticipate a decision on the Australian High Court appeal by Sept/Oct. Supporting current results cited on the call include Q2 revenue of $330M (+3% YoY), adjusted EPS $1.76 (+16%), year‑to‑date operating cash flow $117M (+18%), ETS revenue $42M (+15%) with operating income $20M and a 46.2% margin (+520 bps), Sophia revenue $21M (+27%) and subscribers +32%, Workforce Edge with 81 corporate agreements covering 4M employees and ~4,000 enrollments (+21%), U.S. Higher Ed revenue +2%, operating income $32M (+56%) and a 15% margin (+500 bps) with student retention at 89%, and Australia revenue $67M (≈‑3%) with enrollment down ~5% and operating income of $1M after the reserve; Q2 buybacks totaled ~421,000 shares for $33M with ~$141M remaining authorization.