American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Lake Street Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $62.00 price objective on shares of American Public Education in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Barrington Research boosted their target price on American Public Education from $56.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. B. Riley Financial upped their price target on American Public Education from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen raised American Public Education from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $64.00 price target on shares of American Public Education in a research note on Monday, June 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Public Education presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.12.

American Public Education Price Performance

Shares of APEI opened at $58.04 on Monday. American Public Education has a twelve month low of $27.74 and a twelve month high of $61.59. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $53.90 and its 200-day simple moving average is $50.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.71, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a current ratio of 2.98, a quick ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 11th. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $174.74 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $173.73 million. American Public Education had a net margin of 6.13% and a return on equity of 14.02%. American Public Education has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.340-0.390 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that American Public Education will post 2.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Thomas Beckett sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.00, for a total transaction of $108,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 52,172 shares in the company, valued at $2,817,288. This trade represents a 3.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 10.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Public Education

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of APEI. Valley National Advisers Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American Public Education during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its position in American Public Education by 5,909.5% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,241 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its position in American Public Education by 84.1% in the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,616 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 738 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its stake 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 worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 552 shares during the period. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in American Public Education by 96.5% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 2,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 1,298 shares during the period. 79.62% of the stock is 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.