Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) Hits New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Shares of Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $176.77 and last traded at $172.66, with a volume of 27878 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $171.00.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on LOPE shares. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Grand Canyon Education from $152.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Barrington Research lifted their price objective on Grand Canyon Education from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note 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. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective 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.

Grand Canyon Education Stock Up 0.9 %

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $164.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $150.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.75.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.01. Grand Canyon Education had a net margin of 22.09% and a return on equity of 31.01%. The firm had revenue of $238.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.69 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.26 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Grand Canyon Education, Inc. will post 8.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CTO Dilek Marsh sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.07, for a total value of $249,105.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer now owns 21,174 shares in the company, valued at $3,516,366.18. This represents a 6.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Grand Canyon Education

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education in the 4th quarter worth $204,000. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education in the 4th quarter worth $202,000. Kera Capital Partners Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education in the 4th quarter worth $205,000. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC bought a new stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education in the 4th quarter worth $222,000. Finally, Avanza Fonder AB bought a new stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education in the 4th quarter worth $210,000. Institutional investors own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

Grand Canyon Education Company Profile

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.