Barrington Research Reiterates “Outperform” Rating for Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE)

Barrington Research restated their outperform rating on shares of Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) in a report issued on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. Barrington Research currently has a $165.00 target price on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Grand Canyon Education from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Grand Canyon Education from $160.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th.

Grand Canyon Education Stock Performance

Grand Canyon Education stock opened at $142.78 on Friday. Grand Canyon Education has a one year low of $112.38 and a one year high of $157.53. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $145.02 and a 200 day moving average of $140.17. The stock has a market cap of $4.25 billion, a PE ratio of 19.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.69.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $227.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $223.56 million. Grand Canyon Education had a net margin of 21.88% and a return on equity of 31.49%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Grand Canyon Education will post 7.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Grand Canyon Education

In related 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 value of $211,845.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer now owns 22,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,202,249.02. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 2.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Grand Canyon Education

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LOPE. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,005,381 shares of the company’s stock worth $409,363,000 after purchasing an additional 24,871 shares in the last quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 1.3% in the second quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 850,343 shares of the company’s stock worth $118,971,000 after buying an additional 11,179 shares in the last quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 1.5% during the second quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. now owns 756,971 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,908,000 after acquiring an additional 11,540 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Grand Canyon Education by 1.8% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 716,229 shares of the company’s stock valued at $100,197,000 after acquiring an additional 12,509 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 47.7% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 538,532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $74,452,000 after acquiring an additional 173,800 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

About Grand Canyon Education

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.