American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• American Public Education, Inc. has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from eight analysts, with an average 1-year price target of $35.17.
• The company reported a profit of ($0.02) EPS for the last quarter, exceeding expectations and generating a revenue of $162.77 million.
• A significant insider transaction occurred where Director 325 Capital LLC sold 214,396 shares, reducing their ownership by 15.36%.

Shares of American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eight analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Two analysts have 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 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $35.1667.

A number of analysts have weighed in on APEI shares. Lake Street Capital raised their target price on shares of American Public Education from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Griffin Securities set a $37.00 target price on American Public Education in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Northland Securities assumed coverage on American Public Education in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $36.00 target price for the company. Zacks Research upgraded American Public Education to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Finally, Northland Capmk upgraded shares of American Public Education to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th.

American Public Education Price Performance

Shares of APEI stock opened at $30.64 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $26.33. The company has a market cap of $553.66 million, a P/E ratio of 28.91, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.60. The company has a quick ratio of 2.83, a current ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. American Public Education has a twelve month low of $13.45 and a twelve month high of $32.24.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.07) by $0.05. American Public Education had a net margin of 4.44% and a return on equity of 10.82%. The firm had revenue of $162.77 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $160.88 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that American Public Education will post 0.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at American Public Education

In other news, Director 325 Capital Llc sold 214,396 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.04, for a total transaction of $6,011,663.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 1,181,005 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $33,115,380.20. This trade represents a 15.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 662,464 shares of company stock valued at $19,014,038. Corporate insiders own 17.54% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of American Public Education

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of APEI. Bastion Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in American Public Education during the 4th quarter worth about $9,563,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of American Public Education by 124.8% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 668,130 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,342,000 after buying an additional 370,894 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP bought a new position in shares of American Public Education during the first quarter worth about $5,319,000. CSM Advisors LLC bought a new stake in American Public Education in the second quarter valued at approximately $6,723,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in American Public Education by 76.1% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 389,586 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,867,000 after purchasing an additional 168,362 shares during the period. 79.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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