Magnetar Financial LLC Takes Position in Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE)

Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new stake in Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor bought 1,355 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $222,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LOPE. FMR LLC raised 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 valued at $187,725,000 after buying an additional 141,648 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Grand Canyon Education by 0.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 883,971 shares of the company’s stock worth $125,391,000 after purchasing an additional 8,159 shares in the last quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its stake in Grand Canyon Education by 15.4% during the third quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 513,767 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,878,000 after purchasing an additional 68,579 shares during the period. Boston Partners boosted its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 68.6% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 392,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,786,000 after purchasing an additional 159,827 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 332,642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,185,000 after purchasing an additional 1,101 shares during the period. 94.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on LOPE. Barrington Research lifted their price target on shares of Grand Canyon Education from $180.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Grand Canyon Education from $181.00 to $202.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Grand Canyon Education from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th.

Grand Canyon Education Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of Grand Canyon Education stock opened at $168.82 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.85 billion, a PE ratio of 21.81, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.78. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $175.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $160.12. Grand Canyon Education, Inc. has a 12 month low of $126.17 and a 12 month high of $192.18.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.93 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $292.57 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $289.62 million. Grand Canyon Education had a net margin of 21.90% and a return on equity of 30.67%. Analysts predict that Grand Canyon Education, Inc. will post 8.81 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.