Wasatch Advisors LP Has $72.88 Million Stock Holdings in Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE)

Wasatch Advisors LP raised its stake in Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE) by 15.4% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 513,767 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 68,579 shares during the quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP’s holdings in Grand Canyon Education were worth $72,878,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of LOPE. Cetera Investment Advisers bought a new position in Grand Canyon Education in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,180,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale grew its stake in Grand Canyon Education by 7.0% in the first quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 66,719 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,865,000 after purchasing an additional 4,388 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Grand Canyon Education by 46.1% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 640 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Grand Canyon Education by 14,150.0% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 285 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Grand Canyon Education by 140.4% in the second quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 28,112 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,933,000 after purchasing an additional 16,420 shares in the last quarter. 94.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Grand Canyon Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Barrington Research lifted their target price on Grand Canyon Education from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Grand Canyon Education from $152.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Grand Canyon Education from $170.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th.

Grand Canyon Education Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ LOPE opened at $164.59 on Friday. Grand Canyon Education, Inc. has a 12 month low of $118.48 and a 12 month high of $173.37. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $147.04 and a 200-day moving average of $144.59. The company has a market capitalization of $4.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.70.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $238.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.69 million. Grand Canyon Education had a return on equity of 31.01% and a net margin of 22.09%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.26 EPS. Analysts predict that Grand Canyon Education, Inc. will post 8.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CTO Dilek Marsh sold 1,500 shares of Grand Canyon Education stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.23, for a total transaction of $211,845.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 22,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,202,249.02. This trade represents a 6.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Grand Canyon Education 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.