Victory Capital Management Inc. Buys New Position in American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI)

Victory Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 9,548 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $213,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.05% of American Public Education as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of APEI. Bastion Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in American Public Education during the 4th quarter valued at about $9,563,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in American Public Education by 379.5% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 282,325 shares of the company's stock worth $6,090,000 after purchasing an additional 223,447 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management boosted its position in American Public Education by 649.4% during the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 214,551 shares of the company's stock worth $4,628,000 after purchasing an additional 185,920 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in American Public Education by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 750,912 shares of the company's stock worth $16,197,000 after purchasing an additional 63,103 shares during the period. Finally, EAM Investors LLC bought a new stake in American Public Education during the fourth quarter worth approximately $881,000. 79.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Northland Capmk upgraded American Public Education to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Barrington Research increased their target price on American Public Education from $24.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Truist Financial increased their target price on American Public Education from $24.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. B. Riley reissued a "buy" rating on shares of American Public Education in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Northland Securities started coverage on American Public Education in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $36.00 target price on the stock. One 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 company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $32.20.

American Public Education Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:APEI traded up $0.58 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $30.52. 212,636 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 293,905. The stock has a market cap of $550.58 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.60. American Public Education, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $11.80 and a fifty-two week high of $32.24. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $29.42 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $25.43. The company has a current ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 3.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at American Public Education

In other news, Director 325 Capital Llc sold 214,396 shares of the company'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 completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,181,005 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,115,380.20. This represents a 15.36% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nuno S. Fernandes sold 7,272 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 directly owned 85,459 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,316,793.49. This trade represents a 7.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 669,736 shares of company stock valued at $19,211,182 over the last 90 days. 17.54% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.