Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) Hits New 1-Year High - Should You Buy?

Shares of Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $180.98 and last traded at $175.82, with a volume of 23127 shares. The stock had previously closed at $174.44.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on LOPE. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Grand Canyon Education from $152.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com lowered Grand Canyon Education from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Grand Canyon Education from $170.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Barrington Research restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $180.00 price objective on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a research note on Monday, January 27th.

Grand Canyon Education Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $5.12 billion, a PE ratio of 23.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 0.75. The business's 50 day moving average is $166.57 and its two-hundred day moving average is $152.47.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $238.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $239.69 million. Grand Canyon Education had a return on equity of 31.01% and a net margin of 22.09%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Grand Canyon Education, Inc. will post 8.03 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions 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 dated Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.07, for a total value of $249,105.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 21,174 shares in the company, valued at $3,516,366.18. This represents a 6.62 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Grand Canyon Education

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LOPE. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Grand Canyon Education by 12.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,323,406 shares of the company's stock worth $187,725,000 after buying an additional 141,648 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 883,971 shares of the company's stock worth $125,391,000 after acquiring an additional 8,159 shares during the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 15.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 513,767 shares of the company's stock valued at $72,878,000 after purchasing an additional 68,579 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 423,633 shares of the company's stock valued at $60,092,000 after purchasing an additional 19,577 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 332,642 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,185,000 after purchasing an additional 1,101 shares during the last quarter. 94.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.