Brokerages Set American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI) PT at $31.25

Shares of American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $32.20.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded American Public Education from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Lake Street Capital raised their target price 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. William Blair upgraded American Public Education from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Northland Securities assumed coverage on American Public Education in a research report on Wednesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $36.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price 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.

American Public Education Stock Performance

Shares of APEI stock opened at $29.27 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $528.03 million, a P/E ratio of 28.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.58. The business’s 50 day moving average is $26.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.39. 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 has a 12-month low of $11.80 and a 12-month high of $30.55.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $164.55 million for 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%. Analysts expect that American Public Education will post 0.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director 325 Capital Llc sold 127,406 shares of American Public Education stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.45, for a total transaction of $3,752,106.70. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,661,150 shares in the company, valued at approximately $48,920,867.50. This trade represents a 7.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Nuno S. Fernandes sold 7,272 shares of American Public Education stock in a transaction that occurred 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 now owns 85,459 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,316,793.49. The trade was a 7.84% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 669,736 shares of company stock worth $19,211,182. 17.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Public Education

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in APEI. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in American Public Education by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 90,623 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,955,000 after acquiring an additional 4,324 shares during the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System acquired a new stake in American Public Education during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in American Public Education by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 12,321 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,000 after acquiring an additional 1,120 shares during the last quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp acquired a new stake in American Public Education during the fourth quarter worth $858,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in American Public Education by 29.9% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 57,921 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,249,000 after acquiring an additional 13,344 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.62% 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.