B. Riley Analysts Increase Earnings Estimates for APEI

Key Points

• B. Riley analysts have raised their Q4 2025 earnings estimate for American Public Education to **$0.82** per share, up from a previous forecast of **$0.81**, maintaining a "Buy" rating with a **$37.00** price target.
• American Public Education's stock increased by **1.8%**, trading at **$29.57**, and the company recently reported quarterly earnings of **($0.02) EPS**, exceeding expectations of **($0.07) EPS**.
• Institutional investors hold **79.62%** of the company's stock, with recent positions in the company indicating a growing interest among hedge funds.

American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI - Free Report) - Investment analysts at B. Riley boosted their Q4 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of American Public Education in a research note issued on Wednesday, August 6th. B. Riley analyst G. Boss now anticipates that the company will post earnings of $0.82 per share for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $0.81. B. Riley currently has a "Buy" rating and a $37.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for American Public Education's current full-year earnings is $0.47 per share. B. Riley also issued estimates for American Public Education's Q1 2026 earnings at $0.43 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $0.35 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $0.39 EPS, Q4 2026 earnings at $0.84 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $2.01 EPS.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.07) by $0.05. The company had revenue of $162.77 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $160.88 million. American Public Education had a return on equity of 10.82% and a net margin of 4.44%.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on APEI. Lake Street Capital boosted their price objective on American Public Education from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Northland Capmk upgraded American Public Education to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Northland Securities initiated coverage on American Public Education in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $36.00 price objective for the company. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on American Public Education from $24.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Barrington Research set a $36.00 price objective on American Public Education and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $35.17.

American Public Education Trading Up 3.6%

Shares of American Public Education stock traded up $1.01 during trading on Friday, hitting $29.04. 256,122 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 196,103. The firm has a market capitalization of $524.75 million, a P/E ratio of 27.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.60. American Public Education has a 1-year low of $13.31 and a 1-year high of $32.24. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $29.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $25.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 2.83 and a quick ratio of 2.83.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Public Education

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new stake in American Public Education during the 2nd quarter valued at $58,000. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in American Public Education by 40.5% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,914 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 552 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in American Public Education by 19,594.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,348 shares of the company's stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 3,331 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Public Education during the 1st quarter valued at $89,000. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey lifted its holdings in American Public Education by 14.8% during the 2nd quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 3,625 shares of the company's stock valued at $110,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.62% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at American Public Education

In other news, Director 325 Capital Llc sold 214,396 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owned 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Nuno S. Fernandes sold 7,272 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.11, for a total transaction of $197,143.92. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 85,459 shares of the company's stock, 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 valued at $19,211,182 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 17.54% of the company's stock.

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.