American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report) SVP Thomas Beckett sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.70, for a total value of $115,400.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 62,172 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,587,324.40. This trade represents a 3.12% 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.
American Public Education Trading Up 1.2%
APEI stock opened at $55.98 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $44.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 3.46 and a quick ratio of 3.46. American Public Education, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $20.75 and a fifty-two week high of $58.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.70.
American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 12th. The company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $158.33 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $151.61 million. American Public Education had a return on equity of 11.30% and a net margin of 4.86%.American Public Education has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.580-0.640 EPS. Analysts expect that American Public Education, Inc. will post 0.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of American Public Education from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. William Blair set a $58.00 target price on shares of American Public Education in a research note on Friday. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of American Public Education from $48.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. Griffin Securities set a $53.00 price target on shares of American Public Education in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Truist Financial raised 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $55.50.
Get Our Latest Analysis on APEI
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of American Public Education by 1.7% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,086,727 shares of the company's stock worth $42,893,000 after purchasing an additional 17,902 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in American Public Education by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 962,920 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,398,000 after purchasing an additional 34,700 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in American Public Education by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 847,320 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,028,000 after buying an additional 15,277 shares during the period. No Street GP LP bought a new position in American Public Education during the third quarter worth about $32,365,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in American Public Education by 8.7% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 612,087 shares of the company's stock worth $24,159,000 after buying an additional 49,008 shares during the last quarter. 79.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Key Headlines Impacting American Public Education
Here are the key news stories impacting American Public Education this week:
- Positive Sentiment: DA Davidson raised its price target to $58 and kept a Buy rating, supporting upside expectations after the company’s recent results. DA Davidson Price Target Raise
- Positive Sentiment: Multiple outlets/reporters published higher targets recently (AmericanBankingNews coverage noting $56 and $57 targets), adding momentum to the bullish analyst narrative. Price Target $56 Price Target $57
- Positive Sentiment: Equity coverage is constructive: Zacks highlights upward earnings revisions and says APEI may be poised for further gains—supportive for investor sentiment. Zacks Coverage
- Positive Sentiment: Media note: coverage praising APEI’s “stellar Q4” and diversified portfolio reinforces the view that recent earnings and revenue strength are sustainable. Q4 Performance Article
- Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest reports show an apparent spike but contain zero-share totals and NaN changes — likely a data anomaly rather than a genuine change in bearish positioning; days-to-cover reads as 0.0. (No authoritative link provided in the release.)
- Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: three insiders sold shares on March 16 — SVP Tanya Joy Axenson sold 20,000 shares at ~$55.68 (SEC filing), Nuno S. Fernandes sold 6,500 shares at ~$53.87 (SEC filing), and SVP Thomas Beckett sold 2,000 shares at ~$57.70 (SEC filing). These sizable disposals (largest ~28.6% reduction for Axenson) can create short-term selling pressure or raise investor questions about timing, though insiders may sell for personal/liquidity reasons. Axenson Form 4 Fernandes Form 4 Beckett Form 4
American Public Education Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
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.
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