American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) Hits New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Shares of American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI) hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $58.72 and last traded at $58.26, with a volume of 216778 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $56.18.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. B. Riley Financial increased their price target on American Public Education from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Lake Street Capital upped their price objective on shares of American Public Education from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of American Public Education in a report on Monday, December 29th. Northland Securities set a $51.00 target price on shares of American Public Education in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of American Public Education from $38.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $55.50.

American Public Education Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.08 billion, a PE ratio of 43.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 3.46 and a current ratio of 3.46. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $45.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $39.50.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 12th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $158.33 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $151.61 million. American Public Education has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.580-0.640 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that American Public Education, Inc. will post 0.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Public Education

In related news, SVP Thomas Beckett sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.70, for a total transaction of $115,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 62,172 shares in the company, valued at $3,587,324.40. The trade was a 3.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CMO Karmela Gaffney sold 2,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.87, for a total transaction of $150,849.00. Following the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 40,527 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,264,243.49. The trade was a 6.25% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 377,071 shares of company stock valued at $20,753,569. 17.54% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Public Education

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of American Public Education by 4.3% during the 1st 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. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in American Public Education by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 538,440 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,018,000 after buying an additional 21,079 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in American Public Education by 7.4% during 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 in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in American Public Education by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 422,854 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,882,000 after buying an additional 17,079 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey raised its stake in American Public Education by 14.8% in the second quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 3,625 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after buying an additional 468 shares during the last quarter. 79.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.