American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) Downgraded to “Buy” at StockNews.com

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Wednesday.

APEI has been the topic of several other research reports. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of American Public Education from $6.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Barrington Research upped their target price on shares of American Public Education from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, B. Riley increased their price target on shares of American Public Education from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th.

American Public Education Stock Performance

NASDAQ:APEI opened at $18.80 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $330.13 million, a P/E ratio of -6.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 2.94, a quick ratio of 2.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. American Public Education has a 1 year low of $3.76 and a 1 year high of $21.04. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $13.59 and a 200-day moving average of $10.50.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 5th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.50. The firm had revenue of $152.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $150.54 million. American Public Education had a positive return on equity of 3.26% and a negative net margin of 7.87%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Public Education will post 0.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of American Public Education

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new position in shares of American Public Education in the 3rd quarter valued at about $54,000. Foundry Partners LLC boosted its stake in American Public Education by 34.6% in the third quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 476,265 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,372,000 after acquiring an additional 122,520 shares during the last quarter. Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C. grew its holdings in American Public Education by 11.1% during the 3rd quarter. Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 1,184,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,899,000 after acquiring an additional 118,300 shares during the period. AWM Investment Company Inc. raised its position in shares of American Public Education by 13.4% during the 3rd quarter. AWM Investment Company Inc. now owns 169,370 shares of the company’s stock valued at $843,000 after acquiring an additional 20,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Heron Bay Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of American Public Education during the 4th quarter valued at $252,000. 79.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.