Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $171.6667.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Grand Canyon Education from $198.00 to $185.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Truist Financial set a $100.00 price target on Grand Canyon Education in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $230.00 price target on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Grand Canyon Education from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, June 25th.

Grand Canyon Education Trading Up 3.9%

Shares of LOPE stock opened at $150.45 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.99 billion, a PE ratio of 18.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $147.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $160.60. Grand Canyon Education has a twelve month low of $134.27 and a twelve month high of $223.04.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.78 by $0.08. Grand Canyon Education had a net margin of 19.54% and a return on equity of 34.72%. The business had revenue of $308.76 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $307.75 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.57 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Grand Canyon Education will post 10.04 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Grand Canyon Education

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LOPE. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 4,339.5% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $330,000 after acquiring an additional 1,866 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 14.9% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 115,508 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,985,000 after acquiring an additional 15,019 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,925 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,371,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 7.3% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 123,214 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,318,000 after acquiring an additional 8,421 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC increased its position in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 156.9% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 37,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,462,000 after purchasing an additional 22,812 shares during the last quarter. 94.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Grand Canyon Education Company Profile

Grand Canyon Education, Inc provides a suite of higher‐education services through a long-term agreement with Grand Canyon University (GCU), one of the nation’s largest private Christian universities. The company’s offerings encompass a full range of academic and operational support functions, including enrollment management, student recruitment, curriculum development, instructional delivery, and technology infrastructure. Through its online program management capabilities, Grand Canyon Education helps design, market and deliver undergraduate, graduate and certificate programs to meet the needs of both traditional and non‐traditional learners.

Core services include digital marketing, admissions support, student success coaching, learning management systems and faculty recruitment.