American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) Insider Sells $350,155.00 in Stock

Key Points

• Insider sale: Director Nuno Fernandes sold 6,500 APEI shares on March 16 at an average price of $53.87 for $350,155, cutting his stake by about 7.17% to 84,175 shares worth roughly $4.53 million.
• Earnings beat and analyst optimism: Shares rose about 1.2% on heavy volume after APEI reported Q4 EPS of $0.67 (vs. $0.39 est.) and raised Q1 guidance to $0.580–0.640, while several analysts lifted price targets (DA Davidson to $58; consensus PT $55.50).

American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report) insider Nuno Fernandes sold 6,500 shares of American Public Education stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.87, for a total value of $350,155.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 84,175 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,534,507.25. This represents a 7.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

American Public Education Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ APEI traded up $0.64 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $55.98. 635,632 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 317,375. American Public Education, Inc. has a twelve month low of $20.75 and a twelve month high of $58.69. The company has a current ratio of 3.46, a quick ratio of 3.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.16, a PEG ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.70. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.48.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 11.30% and a net margin of 4.86%.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, equities analysts expect that American Public Education, Inc. will post 0.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Key Stories Impacting American Public Education

Here are the key news stories impacting American Public Education this week:

• Positive Sentiment: DA Davidson raised its price target on APEI from $48 to $58 and maintained a "buy" rating — a meaningful institutional upgrade that supports further upside. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple outlets reported recent price-target increases (to $56 and $57), reinforcing analyst optimism and likely contributing to buying pressure. Price Target $56 Price Target $57
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage from Zacks highlights upward earnings estimate revisions and argues APEI may be positioned for additional gains — analyst revisions often lead to multiple expansion and buying interest. Zacks
• Positive Sentiment: News coverage praising APEI's “stellar” Q4 performance and diversified portfolio growth reinforces the narrative that the company is delivering on revenue and margin improvements after its recent earnings beat and raised Q1 guidance. TheMarketIsOpen
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest reports for March show anomalous values (short interest reported as 0 shares and NaN changes). The data appears inconsistent and does not signal elevated short pressure at this time; treat these figures with caution. (Data entry timestamps: 3/16–3/17)
• Neutral Sentiment: Misc. analyst note from Northland/AMBN coverage on Q1 estimates was published (informational); it provides context for near-term guidance expectations but no clear directional surprise. AmericanBankingNews

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on APEI shares. Wall Street Zen cut American Public Education from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. Northland Securities set a $51.00 price objective on American Public Education in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Barrington Research increased their price objective on American Public Education from $51.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday. DA Davidson upped their price target on American Public Education from $48.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of American Public Education in a report on Monday, December 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $55.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Public Education

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in American Public Education by 1.7% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,086,727 shares of the company's stock worth $42,893,000 after buying an additional 17,902 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in shares of American Public Education by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 962,920 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,398,000 after buying an additional 34,700 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of American Public Education by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 847,320 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,028,000 after buying an additional 15,277 shares during the last quarter. No Street GP LP bought a new position in shares of American Public Education during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,365,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American Public Education by 8.7% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 612,087 shares of the company's stock worth $24,159,000 after acquiring an additional 49,008 shares during the last quarter. 79.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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