American Public Education, Inc. $APEI Shares Bought by Vanguard Group Inc.

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in American Public Education, Inc. by 6.6% in Q1, owning a total of 908,974 shares valued at approximately $20.29 million.
• Institutional investors, including JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo, have also increased their holdings, with 79.62% of the company's stock now owned by such investors.
• Analysts have a positive outlook on American Public Education, with several upgrading their price targets and giving the company an average rating of "Moderate Buy."

Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI - Free Report) by 6.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 908,974 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 56,674 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 5.04% of American Public Education worth $20,288,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of American Public Education by 39.5% during the first quarter. Pacific Ridge Capital Partners LLC now owns 147,930 shares of the company's stock worth $3,302,000 after acquiring an additional 41,922 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American Public Education during the first quarter worth approximately $213,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its position in shares of American Public Education by 123.2% during the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 59,968 shares of the company's stock worth $1,338,000 after acquiring an additional 33,099 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A. purchased a new position in shares of American Public Education during the first quarter worth approximately $384,000. Finally, Bastion Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of American Public Education by 9.6% during the first quarter. Bastion Asset Management Inc. now owns 485,901 shares of the company's stock worth $10,845,000 after acquiring an additional 42,575 shares during the period. 79.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Northland Capmk raised shares of American Public Education to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Northland Securities assumed coverage on shares of American Public Education in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $36.00 target price on the stock. Barrington Research raised their target price on shares of American Public Education from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Griffin Securities set a $37.00 price target on shares of American Public Education in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of American Public Education to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Public Education presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $35.17.

American Public Education Stock Performance

APEI stock traded down $0.37 during trading on Monday, reaching $30.18. The company had a trading volume of 152,809 shares, compared to its average volume of 274,469. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $26.50. The company has a market cap of $545.35 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a current ratio of 2.83. American Public Education, Inc. 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 quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.07) by $0.05. The business had revenue of $162.77 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $160.88 million. American Public Education had a net margin of 4.44% and a return on equity of 10.82%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that American Public Education, Inc. will post 0.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Public Education

In other news, Director 325 Capital Llc sold 214,396 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.04, for a total value of $6,011,663.84. Following the sale, the director owned 1,181,005 shares in the company, valued at $33,115,380.20. This 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 available through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 455,267 shares of company stock valued at $12,921,661 in the last quarter. 17.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

American Public Education 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.