Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) Given New $155.00 Price Target at BMO Capital Markets

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) had its target price increased by BMO Capital Markets from $150.00 to $155.00 in a report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets’ target price suggests a potential upside of 2.79% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on LOPE. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $160.00 target price on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Grand Canyon Education from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday.

Grand Canyon Education Price Performance

Grand Canyon Education stock traded up $11.02 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $150.80. 220,157 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 198,720. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.60. Grand Canyon Education has a 12 month low of $99.65 and a 12 month high of $156.56. The business has a 50 day moving average of $133.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $132.26.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The company reported $2.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.22 by $0.13. Grand Canyon Education had a return on equity of 31.75% and a net margin of 21.33%. The company had revenue of $274.68 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $272.42 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.00 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Grand Canyon Education will post 7.65 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Grand Canyon Education

In other Grand Canyon Education news, CTO Dilek Marsh sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.65, for a total transaction of $198,975.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 25,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,405,656.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 2.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Grand Canyon Education

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LOPE. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 984,511 shares of the company’s stock worth $115,070,000 after purchasing an additional 26,647 shares in the last quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. raised its position in Grand Canyon Education by 11.9% in the 3rd quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. now owns 871,871 shares of the company’s stock valued at $101,904,000 after purchasing an additional 92,445 shares during the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 9.4% in the first quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 463,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,077,000 after acquiring an additional 39,743 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 11.2% during the first quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 456,839 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,226,000 after acquiring an additional 46,024 shares during the last quarter. Finally, William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its position in Grand Canyon Education by 15.9% during the third quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 429,848 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,241,000 after acquiring an additional 59,089 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other 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.