Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE) Short Interest Up 24.3% in December

Grand Canyon Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:LOPE) was the target of a large increase in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 802,161 shares, an increase of 24.3% from the November 30th total of 645,563 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 419,206 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.9 days. Currently, 2.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Currently, 2.9% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 419,206 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.9 days.

Grand Canyon Education Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LOPE opened at $166.31 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.65 billion, a PE ratio of 22.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 0.75. Grand Canyon Education has a fifty-two week low of $149.83 and a fifty-two week high of $223.04. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $168.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $186.22.

Grand Canyon Education (NASDAQ:LOPE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78. Grand Canyon Education had a net margin of 19.38% and a return on equity of 32.41%. The company had revenue of $261.14 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $259.97 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.48 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Grand Canyon Education has set its FY 2025 guidance at 9.020-9.13 EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 3.130-3.240 EPS. Research analysts predict that Grand Canyon Education will post 8.81 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Grand Canyon Education

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LOPE. Ieq Capital LLC increased its holdings in Grand Canyon Education by 40.8% in the first quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 4,755 shares of the company’s stock worth $823,000 after purchasing an additional 1,378 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education in the 1st quarter valued at $317,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Grand Canyon Education in the 1st quarter valued at $417,000. Nomura Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Grand Canyon Education by 84.8% during the 1st quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. now owns 31,181 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,395,000 after acquiring an additional 14,307 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new position in Grand Canyon Education during the first quarter worth $181,000. Institutional investors own 94.17% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LOPE has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Grand Canyon Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a report on Monday. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $230.00 target price on shares of Grand Canyon Education in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Grand Canyon Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $220.00.

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.