American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) Sets New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $30.55 and last traded at $29.27, with a volume of 267140 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $28.07.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APEI has been the topic of a number of research reports. Lake Street Capital upped their price objective on American Public Education from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. B. Riley reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of American Public Education in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of American Public Education from $24.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Barrington Research upped their price target on shares of American Public Education from $24.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Public Education from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Public Education presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $32.20.

American Public Education Trading Up 1.8%

The company has a market capitalization of $537.41 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 3.27 and a current ratio of 3.27. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $26.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $23.53.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.26. The firm had revenue of $164.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $161.92 million. American Public Education had a net margin of 3.86% and a return on equity of 9.96%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that American Public Education, Inc. will post 0.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at American Public Education

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Militia Capital Partners LP lifted its position in shares of American Public Education by 43.5% during the 1st quarter. Militia Capital Partners LP now owns 6,932 shares of the company's stock valued at $155,000 after acquiring an additional 2,100 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its position in American Public Education by 23.1% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 297,236 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,629,000 after buying an additional 55,708 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in American Public Education by 7.4% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 97,294 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,172,000 after buying an additional 6,671 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in American Public Education by 4.1% in 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 during the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of American Public Education by 4.3% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 9,386 shares of the company's stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. 79.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About American Public Education

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.