UPDATE: BMO Capital Upgrades Bridgepoint Education; Maintains Price Target

In a note released Tuesday, BMO Capital upgraded Brdgepoint Education BPI from Market Perform to Outperform and maintained a $19 price target. BMO Capital analyst Jeff Silber appears confident that Bridgepoint Education has moved past its history of aggressive recruiting and the initial troubles of switching accreditation. Moreover, Silber suggests that if investors can get over this "baggage" Bridgepoint is an attractive investment. Silber listed three factors outlining this change from Bridgepoint.

• Greater focus on student retention and outcomes as shown by the enhanced spending on Instructional Costs and Services.
• The recent switch to WACS accreditation is something we have rarely (if ever) seen in this sector.
• we are fairly confident that BPI will start generating y/y starts growth this year. Turning to valuation metrics, Silber had this to say, "We believe consensus estimates are low, and we forecast both EBITDA and EPS could begin to grow on a y/y basis as early as 3Q14." Possibly trading on the BMO upgrade, Bridgepoint was up just under 6 percent for the day at last check.