Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) Hits New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $159.26 and last traded at $159.12, with a volume of 310518 shares. The stock had previously closed at $139.75.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Grand Canyon Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Grand Canyon Education from $160.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 price target on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a research note on Friday, September 20th.

Grand Canyon Education Trading Up 14.6 %

The company has a 50 day moving average of $139.01 and a 200-day moving average of $141.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.70.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $227.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $223.56 million. Grand Canyon Education had a return on equity of 31.49% and a net margin of 21.88%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.01 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Grand Canyon Education, Inc. will post 7.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Grand Canyon Education

In other Grand Canyon Education news, CTO Dilek Marsh sold 1,500 shares of Grand Canyon Education stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.23, for a total value of $211,845.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 22,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,202,249.02. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Grand Canyon Education

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Natixis Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Grand Canyon Education during the 3rd quarter worth $1,440,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,041 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,424,000 after buying an additional 421 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its holdings in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 22.0% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 944 shares of the company’s stock worth $134,000 after buying an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 10,075 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,429,000 after buying an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versor Investments LP acquired a new position in shares of Grand Canyon Education during the 3rd quarter worth $241,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.