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Side-by-side financial comparison of PEGASYSTEMS INC (PEGA) and Strategic Education, Inc. (STRA). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
PEGASYSTEMS INC is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($430.0M vs $305.9M, roughly 1.4× Strategic Education, Inc.). Strategic Education, Inc. runs the higher net margin — 9.7% vs 7.6%, a 2.1% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Strategic Education, Inc. posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (-0.8% vs -9.6%). PEGASYSTEMS INC produced more free cash flow last quarter ($206.5M vs $57.3M). Over the past eight quarters, PEGASYSTEMS INC's revenue compounded faster (10.7% CAGR vs -1.0%).
Pegasystems Inc. (Pega) is a global software company based in Waltham, Massachusetts, in the United States, and founded in 1983. The company has been publicly traded since 1996 as PEGA (NASDAQ). Pega is a low-code platform for workflow automation and generative AI-powered decision-making for businesses.
Strategic Education, Inc. (SEI) is an education services holding company and is formerly known as Strayer Education, Inc. The company owns for-profit, online Capella University and Strayer University, as well as non-degree programs schools such as DevMountain, Hackbright Academy, and Sophia Learning.
PEGA vs STRA — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q1 FY2026 vs Q1 FY2026
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $430.0M | $305.9M |
| Net Profit | $32.8M | $29.7M |
| Gross Margin | 75.2% | — |
| Operating Margin | 8.6% | 13.0% |
| Net Margin | 7.6% | 9.7% |
| Revenue YoY | -9.6% | -0.8% |
| Net Profit YoY | -61.6% | -9.3% |
| EPS (diluted) | $0.18 | $1.24 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q1 26 | $430.0M | $305.9M | ||
| Q4 25 | $504.3M | $323.2M | ||
| Q3 25 | $381.4M | $319.9M | ||
| Q2 25 | $384.5M | $321.5M | ||
| Q1 25 | $475.6M | $303.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | $490.8M | $311.5M | ||
| Q3 24 | $325.1M | $306.0M | ||
| Q2 24 | $351.2M | $312.3M |
| Q1 26 | $32.8M | $29.7M | ||
| Q4 25 | $234.6M | $37.9M | ||
| Q3 25 | $43.4M | $26.6M | ||
| Q2 25 | $30.1M | $32.3M | ||
| Q1 25 | $85.4M | $29.7M | ||
| Q4 24 | $119.1M | $25.3M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-14.4M | $27.7M | ||
| Q2 24 | $6.6M | $29.9M |
| Q1 26 | 75.2% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 79.5% | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 72.2% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 71.5% | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 78.5% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 79.1% | — | ||
| Q3 24 | 70.2% | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 72.4% | — |
| Q1 26 | 8.6% | 13.0% | ||
| Q4 25 | 20.7% | 16.0% | ||
| Q3 25 | 3.8% | 11.6% | ||
| Q2 25 | 4.5% | 14.2% | ||
| Q1 25 | 26.7% | 13.1% | ||
| Q4 24 | 29.1% | 11.6% | ||
| Q3 24 | -3.6% | 11.9% | ||
| Q2 24 | 3.7% | 13.4% |
| Q1 26 | 7.6% | 9.7% | ||
| Q4 25 | 46.5% | 11.7% | ||
| Q3 25 | 11.4% | 8.3% | ||
| Q2 25 | 7.8% | 10.1% | ||
| Q1 25 | 18.0% | 9.8% | ||
| Q4 24 | 24.3% | 8.1% | ||
| Q3 24 | -4.4% | 9.1% | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.9% | 9.6% |
| Q1 26 | $0.18 | $1.24 | ||
| Q4 25 | $0.81 | $1.65 | ||
| Q3 25 | $0.24 | $1.15 | ||
| Q2 25 | $0.17 | $1.37 | ||
| Q1 25 | $0.91 | $1.24 | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.35 | $1.05 | ||
| Q3 24 | $-0.17 | $1.15 | ||
| Q2 24 | $0.07 | $1.24 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $270.0M | $140.8M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | — | — |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $705.9M | $1.6B |
| Total Assets | $1.6B | $2.0B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | — | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | $270.0M | $140.8M | ||
| Q4 25 | $425.8M | $148.1M | ||
| Q3 25 | $351.4M | $172.6M | ||
| Q2 25 | $411.6M | $164.9M | ||
| Q1 25 | $371.7M | $182.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | $740.0M | $184.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | $703.0M | $222.1M | ||
| Q2 24 | $665.1M | $256.2M |
| Q1 26 | $705.9M | $1.6B | ||
| Q4 25 | $787.4M | $1.6B | ||
| Q3 25 | $596.8M | $1.7B | ||
| Q2 25 | $624.5M | $1.7B | ||
| Q1 25 | $611.3M | $1.6B | ||
| Q4 24 | $585.5M | $1.7B | ||
| Q3 24 | $473.0M | $1.7B | ||
| Q2 24 | $435.4M | $1.7B |
| Q1 26 | $1.6B | $2.0B | ||
| Q4 25 | $1.6B | $2.0B | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.3B | $2.1B | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.3B | $2.1B | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.3B | $2.1B | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.8B | $2.0B | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.6B | $2.2B | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.5B | $2.2B |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | — | $67.7M |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $206.5M | $57.3M |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 48.0% | 18.7% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | — | — |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | — | 2.27× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $494.9M | $153.9M |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | — | $67.7M | ||
| Q4 25 | $158.4M | $39.2M | ||
| Q3 25 | $56.3M | $60.1M | ||
| Q2 25 | $86.3M | $31.2M | ||
| Q1 25 | $204.2M | $67.7M | ||
| Q4 24 | $95.2M | $15.9M | ||
| Q3 24 | $30.5M | $51.5M | ||
| Q2 24 | $40.1M | $24.3M |
| Q1 26 | $206.5M | $57.3M | ||
| Q4 25 | $152.4M | $27.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | $51.8M | $49.3M | ||
| Q2 25 | $84.1M | $20.4M | ||
| Q1 25 | $202.3M | $57.3M | ||
| Q4 24 | $92.4M | $4.7M | ||
| Q3 24 | $27.4M | $42.1M | ||
| Q2 24 | $38.8M | $13.6M |
| Q1 26 | 48.0% | 18.7% | ||
| Q4 25 | 30.2% | 8.3% | ||
| Q3 25 | 13.6% | 15.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | 21.9% | 6.3% | ||
| Q1 25 | 42.5% | 18.9% | ||
| Q4 24 | 18.8% | 1.5% | ||
| Q3 24 | 8.4% | 13.8% | ||
| Q2 24 | 11.1% | 4.3% |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 1.2% | 3.8% | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.2% | 3.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.6% | 3.4% | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.4% | 3.4% | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.6% | 3.6% | ||
| Q3 24 | 0.9% | 3.1% | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.4% | 3.4% |
| Q1 26 | — | 2.27× | ||
| Q4 25 | 0.68× | 1.03× | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.30× | 2.26× | ||
| Q2 25 | 2.87× | 0.97× | ||
| Q1 25 | 2.39× | 2.27× | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.80× | 0.63× | ||
| Q3 24 | — | 1.86× | ||
| Q2 24 | 6.06× | 0.81× |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
PEGA
| Pega Cloud | $205.0M | 48% |
| Subscription license | $94.9M | 22% |
| Maintenance | $75.3M | 18% |
| Consulting | $54.8M | 13% |
STRA
| U.S. Higher Education | $221.0M | 72% |
| Australia/New Zealand | $48.3M | 16% |
| Education Technology Services | $34.3M | 11% |
