Barrington Research Reaffirms Outperform Rating for Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE)

Key Points

• Barrington Research reaffirmed an Outperform rating on Grand Canyon Education (LOPE) with a $230 price target, implying roughly a 35% upside from current levels.
• In the most recent quarter LOPE reported $3.21 EPS (beating by $0.02) and $308.12M revenue, up 5.3% year-over-year, with a 19.54% net margin and 33.28% return on equity.
• Market consensus is a Moderate Buy with an average target of $220; shares trade near $170 (1‑year range $149.37–$223.04) and about 94% of the stock is held by institutional investors.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "outperform" rating reaffirmed by investment analysts at Barrington Research in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $230.00 price target on the stock. Barrington Research's target price indicates a potential upside of 35.31% from the company's current price.

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a report on Friday, April 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $220.00.

Grand Canyon Education Price Performance

Shares of Grand Canyon Education stock opened at $169.98 on Thursday. Grand Canyon Education has a 1 year low of $149.37 and a 1 year high of $223.04. The firm has a market cap of $4.61 billion, a PE ratio of 22.02, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $165.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $174.44.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported $3.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.19 by $0.02. Grand Canyon Education had a net margin of 19.54% and a return on equity of 33.28%. The business had revenue of $308.12 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $307.92 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.95 earnings per share. Grand Canyon Education's revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Grand Canyon Education will post 8.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Grand Canyon Education

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LOPE. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Grand Canyon Education during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in Grand Canyon Education by 70.7% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 157 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank purchased a new position in Grand Canyon Education during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new position in Grand Canyon Education during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Grand Canyon Education during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. 94.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Grand Canyon Education

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.

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