American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI) Given Average Rating of "Buy" by Brokerages

American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus rating of "Buy" from the seven analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $32.20.

Several brokerages have weighed in on APEI. B. Riley restated a "buy" rating on shares of American Public Education in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Northland Securities began coverage on American Public Education in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $36.00 price objective on the stock. Northland Capmk upgraded American Public Education to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Lake Street Capital raised their price objective on American Public Education from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Barrington Research raised their price objective on American Public Education from $24.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th.

American Public Education Stock Up 3.0%

NASDAQ APEI traded up $0.90 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $30.88. The company's stock had a trading volume of 411,137 shares, compared to its average volume of 182,345. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $28.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $24.21. American Public Education has a twelve month low of $11.80 and a twelve month high of $31.62. The company has a current ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 3.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $557.08 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.27, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.57.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.26. American Public Education had a net margin of 3.86% and a return on equity of 9.96%. The business had revenue of $164.55 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $161.92 million. Analysts anticipate that American Public Education will post 0.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director 325 Capital Llc sold 214,396 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.04, for a total value of $6,011,663.84. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,181,005 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,115,380.20. The trade was a 15.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nuno S. Fernandes sold 7,272 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.11, for a total value of $197,143.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 85,459 shares in the company, valued at $2,316,793.49. This represents a 7.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 669,736 shares of company stock worth $19,211,182 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 17.54% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Public Education

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in APEI. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in American Public Education by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 908,974 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,288,000 after buying an additional 56,674 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in American Public Education by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 761,534 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,426,000 after buying an additional 34,817 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in American Public Education by 9.2% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 750,912 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,197,000 after buying an additional 63,103 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in American Public Education by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 538,440 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,018,000 after buying an additional 21,079 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in American Public Education by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 516,266 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,523,000 after buying an additional 8,550 shares in the last quarter. 79.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Public Education Company Profile

American Public Education, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides online and campus-based postsecondary education and career learning in the United States. It operates through three segments: American Public University System, Rasmussen University, and Hondros College of Nursing. The company offers 184 degree programs and 134 certificate programs in various fields of study, including nursing, national security, military studies, intelligence, homeland security, business, health science, information technology, justice studies, education, and liberal arts; and career learning opportunities in leadership, finance, human resources, and other fields of study critical to the federal government workforce.