American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) Shares Down 5.3% – Here’s Why

American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI)’s share price traded down 5.3% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $41.43 and last traded at $41.1350. Approximately 139,498 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 53% from the average session volume of 298,705 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.43.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

APEI has been the topic of several research reports. Zacks Research downgraded American Public Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Weiss Ratings downgraded American Public Education from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Lake Street Capital upped their price target on American Public Education from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. DA Davidson reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $64.00 price target on shares of American Public Education in a report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut American Public Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.38.

American Public Education Stock Down 5.3%

The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $47.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.02. The stock has a market cap of $752.77 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a current ratio of 3.25, a quick ratio of 3.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.16. American Public Education had a return on equity of 15.30% and a net margin of 6.84%.The company had revenue of $171.73 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $170.88 million. American Public Education has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.480-2.790 EPS and its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.180-0.290 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that American Public Education, Inc. will post 2.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Public Education

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Public Education during the 2nd quarter worth about $399,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP raised its position in shares of American Public Education by 26.5% in the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 34,006 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,826,000 after acquiring an additional 7,132 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new position in American Public Education during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $47,000. IFP Advisors Inc grew its holdings in American Public Education by 111.8% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 2,360 shares of the company’s stock valued at $127,000 after purchasing an additional 1,246 shares during the period. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its holdings in American Public Education by 329.7% during the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 48,287 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,593,000 after purchasing an additional 37,049 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.62% of the company’s stock.

About American Public Education

American Public Education, Inc (NASDAQ: APEI) is an education-services company that provides postsecondary education and career-focused learning through its operating institutions. Its primary business is American Public University System (APUS), which includes American Public University and American Military University. APUS offers primarily online undergraduate and graduate programs designed for adult learners, military personnel, veterans, public-service professionals and other students seeking flexible higher education.

Through APUS, the company provides programs in areas such as business, cybersecurity, information technology, intelligence studies, public administration, health, nursing, education and the liberal arts.