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

Key Points

• Analyst consensus: Eight brokerages rate APEI a "Moderate Buy" (2 hold, 5 buy, 1 strong buy) with an average 12-month price target of $55.50, and several firms recently raised targets into the mid‑$50s.
• Strong quarterly results: APEI reported EPS of $0.67 vs. $0.39 expected and revenue of $158.33M vs. $151.61M, and set Q1 2026 guidance of $0.580–0.640 while analysts forecast ~2.38 EPS for the fiscal year.
• Notable insider selling: Insiders sold 377,071 shares (~$20.75M) over the last quarter, including recent sales by the SVP and CMO, leaving insiders with 10.60% ownership while institutions hold ~79.62%.

Shares of American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the eight brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $55.50.

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of American Public Education from $38.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Lake Street Capital upped their price target on shares of American Public Education from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Griffin Securities set a $53.00 price target on shares of American Public Education in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of American Public Education from $48.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Finally, B. Riley Financial restated a "buy" rating on shares of American Public Education in a research report on Thursday.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Public Education

In other news, SVP Thomas Beckett sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.70, for a total transaction of $115,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 62,172 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,587,324.40. This represents a 3.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Karmela Gaffney sold 2,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.87, for a total transaction of $150,849.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 40,527 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,264,243.49. This trade represents a 6.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 377,071 shares of company stock valued at $20,753,569. 10.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Public Education

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new position in shares of American Public Education during the third quarter valued at about $40,000. Valley National Advisers Inc. bought a new position in shares of American Public Education during the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Public Education by 5,909.5% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,262 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,241 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in shares of American Public Education by 84.1% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,616 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 738 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in shares of American Public Education by 40.5% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,914 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 552 shares during the last quarter. 79.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Public Education Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:APEI opened at $57.54 on Tuesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $53.82 and a 200 day moving average of $43.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 3.46 and a current ratio of 3.46. American Public Education has a 52-week low of $23.00 and a 52-week high of $61.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a PE ratio of 42.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.46.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 12th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.28. American Public Education had a net margin of 4.86% and a return on equity of 11.30%. The business had revenue of $158.33 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $151.61 million. American Public Education has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.580-0.640 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that American Public Education will post 2.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About American Public Education

American Public Education, Inc operates as a provider of online postsecondary education, offering degree and certificate programs through its wholly owned subsidiary, American Public University System (APUS). The company designs and delivers a broad range of undergraduate and graduate programs in fields such as business administration, information technology, criminal justice, homeland security, health sciences, and education. Its curriculum is developed to meet the needs of working adults, military personnel, veterans and civilian students seeking flexible, career-relevant learning opportunities.

APUS is regionally accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education and employs a proprietary online learning platform that supports asynchronous instruction, digital course materials and interactive learning tools.

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