Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) Upgraded to "Buy" at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Tuesday.

LOPE has been the topic of several other reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Grand Canyon Education from $181.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Grand Canyon Education from $170.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Barrington Research raised their price target on shares of Grand Canyon Education from $180.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th.

Grand Canyon Education Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LOPE traded up $1.64 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $179.82. 227,183 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 160,615. Grand Canyon Education has a one year low of $126.17 and a one year high of $192.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.17 billion, a PE ratio of 23.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.74. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $172.52 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $156.85.

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Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.93 by $0.02. Grand Canyon Education had a net margin of 21.90% and a return on equity of 30.67%. The firm had revenue of $292.57 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $289.62 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Grand Canyon Education will post 8.81 EPS for the current 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, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.07, for a total transaction of $249,105.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 21,174 shares in the company, valued at $3,516,366.18. This trade represents a 6.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. GeoWealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Grand Canyon Education during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. bought a new stake in Grand Canyon Education during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Grand Canyon Education during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.