Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) Issues Q3 2026 Earnings Guidance

Key Points

• Grand Canyon Education issued Q3 2026 guidance of $1.74–$1.78 in EPS and $268.5–$270.5 million in revenue, both slightly below consensus estimates. Full-year 2026 EPS guidance was updated to $10.18–$10.32.
• Shares fell 5.8% to $150.13 following the guidance update. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $171.67.
• The company’s latest reported quarter exceeded expectations, with EPS of $1.81 versus the $1.69 consensus and revenue of $264.05 million versus estimates of $261.80 million; institutional investors own 94.17% of outstanding shares.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE - Get Free Report) issued an update on its third quarter 2026 earnings guidance on Thursday morning. The company provided EPS guidance of 1.740-1.780 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 1.830. The company issued revenue guidance of $268.5 million-$270.5 million, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $270.3 million. Grand Canyon Education also updated its FY 2026 guidance to 10.180-10.320 EPS.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LOPE. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Grand Canyon Education from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Barrington Research restated an "outperform" rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Truist Financial set a $100.00 price objective on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Grand Canyon Education from $198.00 to $185.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Grand Canyon Education currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $171.67.

Grand Canyon Education Stock Down 5.8%

Shares of NASDAQ LOPE traded down $9.18 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $150.13. The company had a trading volume of 499,223 shares, compared to its average volume of 310,956. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.57. The firm's 50 day moving average is $147.73 and its 200-day moving average is $160.49. Grand Canyon Education has a 1-year low of $134.27 and a 1-year high of $223.04.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $264.05 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $261.80 million. Grand Canyon Education had a return on equity of 34.72% and a net margin of 19.54%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Grand Canyon Education will post 10.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Grand Canyon Education

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in Grand Canyon Education by 6,102.7% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 480,460 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,905,000 after buying an additional 472,714 shares during the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 48.0% in the 4th quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 483,184 shares of the company's stock worth $80,358,000 after purchasing an additional 156,777 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 30.9% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 649,269 shares of the company's stock worth $107,980,000 after purchasing an additional 153,189 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 78.5% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 283,710 shares of the company's stock worth $62,280,000 after purchasing an additional 124,769 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 31.2% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 339,758 shares of the company's stock worth $56,930,000 after purchasing an additional 80,704 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.17% of the company's stock.

Grand Canyon Education Company Profile

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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