Truist Financial Initiates Coverage on Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE)

Research analysts at Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage set a “buy” rating and a $200.00 price target on the stock. Truist Financial’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 34.60% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $230.00 price objective on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a research report on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $213.33.

Grand Canyon Education Stock Performance

Shares of Grand Canyon Education stock opened at $148.59 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.94 billion, a PE ratio of 18.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.56. Grand Canyon Education has a 1 year low of $145.00 and a 1 year high of $223.04. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $163.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $164.67.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $2.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.78 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $308.76 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $307.75 million. Grand Canyon Education had a net margin of 19.54% and a return on equity of 34.72%. Grand Canyon Education’s quarterly revenue was up 6.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.57 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Grand Canyon Education will post 10.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Grand Canyon Education

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LOPE. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 5.3% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,201 shares of the company’s stock worth $204,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Leonteq Securities AG boosted its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 48.9% during the first quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 195 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 70.7% during the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 157 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 1.0% during the third quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 6,475 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,421,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Twin Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 1.5% during the first quarter. Twin Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,632 shares of the company’s stock worth $788,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

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.