Grand Canyon Education, Inc. $LOPE Shares Sold by Panagora Asset Management Inc.

Key Points

• Panagora Asset Management Inc. reduced its stake in Grand Canyon Education by 31.6% in the first quarter, selling 7,670 shares and now owning approximately 0.06% of the company, valued at $2,867,000.
• Several analysts have given a consensus rating of "Buy" for Grand Canyon Education, with new price targets ranging from $203.67 to $215.00.
• The company reported $1.53 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analyst expectations and showing an 8.8% increase in revenue year-over-year.

Panagora Asset Management Inc. lessened its holdings in Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE - Free Report) by 31.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,568 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,670 shares during the period. Panagora Asset Management Inc. owned about 0.06% of Grand Canyon Education worth $2,867,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LOPE. SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education in the first quarter worth about $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Grand Canyon Education during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Grand Canyon Education in the 1st quarter worth approximately $44,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. grew its position in Grand Canyon Education by 58.2% in the first quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 261 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 107.8% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 318 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the period. 94.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on LOPE shares. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Grand Canyon Education from $222.00 to $210.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen raised Grand Canyon Education from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $215.00 price target on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $203.67.

Grand Canyon Education Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LOPE traded down $0.86 during trading on Friday, reaching $204.28. The stock had a trading volume of 171,092 shares, compared to its average volume of 246,975. The stock has a market cap of $5.74 billion, a PE ratio of 24.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.80. Grand Canyon Education, Inc. has a one year low of $130.69 and a one year high of $207.22. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $185.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $183.07.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.16. Grand Canyon Education had a net margin of 22.15% and a return on equity of 31.50%. The firm had revenue of $247.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $240.90 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.19 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Grand Canyon Education, Inc. will post 8.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Grand Canyon Education 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.