BNP Paribas Financial Markets Reduces Position in Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets decreased its holdings in shares of Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE) by 45.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 12,688 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,506 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in Grand Canyon Education were worth $1,800,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Grand Canyon Education during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Grand Canyon Education in the third quarter worth about $60,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 710.7% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 608 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 533 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of Grand Canyon Education during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $109,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 19.8% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 767 shares of the company’s stock worth $109,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. 94.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Grand Canyon Education

In other news, CTO Dilek Marsh sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.23, for a total transaction of $211,845.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 22,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,202,249.02. This represents a 6.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 2.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LOPE has been the topic of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Grand Canyon Education from $170.00 to $186.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Grand Canyon Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Grand Canyon Education from $152.00 to $173.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Barrington Research boosted their price objective on Grand Canyon Education from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th.

Grand Canyon Education Stock Performance

LOPE stock opened at $167.79 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $149.52 and its 200-day moving average price is $145.38. Grand Canyon Education, Inc. has a one year low of $118.48 and a one year high of $173.37. The company has a market capitalization of $4.89 billion, a PE ratio of 22.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.76.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $238.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $239.69 million. Grand Canyon Education had a net margin of 22.09% and a return on equity of 31.01%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.26 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Grand Canyon Education, Inc. will post 8.03 EPS for the current fiscal 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.