Empirical Asset Management LLC Purchases 608 Shares of Grand Canyon Education, Inc. $LOPE

Empirical Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE) by 20.7% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 3,550 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 608 shares during the quarter. Empirical Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Grand Canyon Education were worth $671,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LOPE. SVB Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Grand Canyon Education in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Grand Canyon Education in the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Grand Canyon Education in the 1st quarter valued at about $44,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. boosted its position in Grand Canyon Education by 58.2% in the 1st quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 261 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in Grand Canyon Education by 2,172.7% in the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 239 shares during the period. 94.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Grand Canyon Education Stock Performance

Shares of LOPE opened at $208.41 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $207.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $190.41. Grand Canyon Education, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $130.69 and a fifty-two week high of $220.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.85 billion, a PE ratio of 25.23, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.76.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.53 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.37 by $0.16. Grand Canyon Education had a net margin of 22.15% and a return on equity of 31.50%. The company had revenue of $247.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $240.90 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.19 earnings per share. Grand Canyon Education’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Grand Canyon Education, Inc. will post 8.81 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Grand Canyon Education from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $230.00 price objective on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a research report on Tuesday, September 23rd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Grand Canyon Education from $222.00 to $210.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Zacks Research cut shares of Grand Canyon Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b+)” rating on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a research report on Tuesday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $208.67.

Grand Canyon Education Company 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.