Virtus Advisers LLC Takes Position in Grand Canyon Education, Inc. $LOPE

Key Points

• Virtus Advisers LLC invested approximately $588,000 in Grand Canyon Education, acquiring 3,396 shares during the first quarter.
• Several hedge funds, including Pinebridge Investments L.P., made significant changes to their holdings in Grand Canyon Education, with institutional investors owning 94.17% of the company's stock.
• Analysts currently have a consensus "Buy" rating for Grand Canyon Education, with price targets ranging from $203.67 to $215.00.

Virtus Advisers LLC acquired a new position in Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 3,396 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $588,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 6.9% in the first quarter. Burgundy Asset Management Ltd. now owns 946,152 shares of the company's stock worth $163,703,000 after acquiring an additional 61,034 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 79.7% in the first quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 386,244 shares of the company's stock worth $66,828,000 after acquiring an additional 171,261 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 8.1% in the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 370,875 shares of the company's stock worth $64,169,000 after acquiring an additional 27,714 shares during the period. Reinhart Partners LLC. increased its stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 10.7% in the first quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 366,392 shares of the company's stock worth $63,393,000 after acquiring an additional 35,446 shares during the period. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 3.8% in the first quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 360,825 shares of the company's stock worth $62,430,000 after acquiring an additional 13,347 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.17% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Grand Canyon Education Price Performance

LOPE stock traded up $0.83 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $201.57. 331,607 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 311,140. The firm has a market cap of $5.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.40, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.79. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $184.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $182.37. Grand Canyon Education, Inc. has a 1-year low of $130.69 and a 1-year high of $207.12.

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

About Grand Canyon Education

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.