Avanza Fonder AB Purchases Shares of 1,279 Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE)

Avanza Fonder AB acquired a new position in shares of Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 1,279 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $210,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 47.7% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 538,532 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,452,000 after buying an additional 173,800 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,323,406 shares of the company’s stock worth $187,725,000 after acquiring an additional 141,648 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 15.4% in the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 513,767 shares of the company’s stock valued at $72,878,000 after purchasing an additional 68,579 shares during the last quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC lifted its position in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 1,481.8% during the second quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 64,821 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,069,000 after purchasing an additional 60,723 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 19.5% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 263,381 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,361,000 after purchasing an additional 43,005 shares during the last quarter. 94.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Grand Canyon Education

In related news, CTO Dilek Marsh sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $166.07, for a total value of $249,105.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now owns 21,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,516,366.18. This represents a 6.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Grand Canyon Education Stock Performance

Shares of LOPE stock opened at $169.99 on Monday. Grand Canyon Education, Inc. has a 52-week low of $118.48 and a 52-week high of $176.77. The business’s fifty day moving average is $165.09 and its 200 day moving average is $150.54. The company has a market capitalization of $4.96 billion, a PE ratio of 22.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.75.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

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.