VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al Acquires 9,100 Shares of Grand Canyon Education, Inc. $LOPE

Key Points

• Virginia Retirement Systems increased its Grand Canyon Education stake by 80% in the third quarter, buying 9,100 shares to hold 20,478 shares valued at approximately $3.1 million.
• Institutional investors own 94.17% of LOPE’s outstanding shares, with several other funds also increasing their positions or initiating new stakes.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with three Buy ratings and one Hold rating and an average price target of $160.67; shares recently opened at $149.65.

VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al grew its holdings in Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE - Free Report) by 80.0% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,478 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 9,100 shares during the period. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al owned approximately 0.08% of Grand Canyon Education worth $3,104,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of LOPE. Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in Grand Canyon Education by 128.3% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,708 shares of the company's stock worth $411,000 after purchasing an additional 1,522 shares in the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI purchased a new position in shares of Grand Canyon Education during the 3rd quarter valued at $206,000. Evergreen Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Grand Canyon Education during the 3rd quarter valued at $312,000. Skylands Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 15.9% during the 3rd quarter. Skylands Capital LLC now owns 66,715 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,113,000 after purchasing an additional 9,150 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 2.9% in the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 42,218 shares of the company's stock worth $6,400,000 after purchasing an additional 1,177 shares during the period. 94.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LOPE. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Grand Canyon Education from $185.00 to $182.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Grand Canyon Education from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 9th. Finally, Barrington Research set a $200.00 target price on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $160.67.

Grand Canyon Education Stock Performance

Shares of LOPE stock opened at $149.65 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.10, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.58. Grand Canyon Education, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $134.27 and a fifty-two week high of $188.83. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $153.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $157.47.

Grand Canyon Education Company Profile

Grand Canyon Education, Inc NASDAQ: LOPE is an education services company that provides technology, operational and support services to colleges and universities. Rather than operating primarily as a traditional university, the company partners with higher education institutions to help them deliver online, hybrid and campus-based academic programs.

Its services include learning technology, digital course development, data analytics, marketing, student enrollment and support, financial aid assistance, faculty support, and other administrative functions.

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