American Public Education, Inc. $APEI Shares Sold by Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C.

Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C. lessened its position in shares of American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI) by 31.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 857,226 shares of the company’s stock after selling 385,245 shares during the period. American Public Education makes up approximately 3.6% of Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Prescott Group Capital Management L.L.C. owned about 4.74% of American Public Education worth $33,835,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in American Public Education by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 9,386 shares of the company’s stock worth $209,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in American Public Education by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 538,440 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,018,000 after buying an additional 21,079 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Public Education by 7.4% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 97,294 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,172,000 after buying an additional 6,671 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Public Education in the second quarter valued at about $297,000. Finally, Regal Partners Ltd acquired a new position in shares of American Public Education in the second quarter valued at about $224,000. Institutional investors own 79.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on APEI shares. Zacks Research raised shares of American Public Education from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of American Public Education in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Lake Street Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $47.00 target price on shares of American Public Education in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of American Public Education in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of American Public Education from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, American Public Education presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.43.

American Public Education Price Performance

American Public Education stock opened at $43.43 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 2.84 and a current ratio of 2.84. American Public Education, Inc. has a 52 week low of $18.76 and a 52 week high of $45.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $785.21 million, a P/E ratio of 32.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.71. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $39.74 and a 200-day moving average of $35.84.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 10th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by $0.39. The business had revenue of $163.22 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $160.02 million. American Public Education had a return on equity of 11.75% and a net margin of 4.87%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that American Public Education, Inc. will post 0.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Public Education Profile

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.