Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) Stock Price Expected to Rise, BMO Capital Markets Analyst Says

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) had its price objective lifted by stock analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $152.00 to $173.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price objective would suggest a potential upside of 8.13% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on LOPE. StockNews.com cut shares of Grand Canyon Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Barrington Research increased their price objective on shares of Grand Canyon Education from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday.

Grand Canyon Education Stock Performance

Shares of Grand Canyon Education stock traded down $0.16 during trading on Thursday, reaching $159.99. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 214,623 shares, compared to its average volume of 178,278. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $139.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $141.20. The firm has a market cap of $4.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.70. Grand Canyon Education has a one year low of $118.48 and a one year high of $161.65.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.02. Grand Canyon Education had a return on equity of 31.49% and a net margin of 21.88%. The business had revenue of $238.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.69 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.26 EPS. Grand Canyon Education’s revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Grand Canyon Education will post 7.98 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Grand Canyon Education

In other news, CTO Dilek Marsh sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.23, for a total transaction of $211,845.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 22,674 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,202,249.02. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Grand Canyon Education

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its position in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 423,633 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,092,000 after purchasing an additional 19,577 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,440,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,041 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,424,000 after acquiring an additional 421 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 22.0% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 944 shares of the company’s stock worth $134,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 10,075 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,429,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

Grand Canyon Education Company Profile

Grand Canyon Education, Inc provides education services to colleges and universities in the United States. It offers technology services, including learning management system, internal administration, infrastructure, and support services; academic services, such as program and curriculum, faculty and related training and development, class scheduling, and skills and simulation lab sites; and counseling services and support services comprising admission, financial aid, and field experience and other counseling services.