American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI) was the target of a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 427,900 shares, an increase of 9.8% from the March 15th total of 389,600 shares. Currently, 2.6% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 172,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.5 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Public Education

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in American Public Education in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in American Public Education by 1,169.3% during the 1st quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 9,837 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 9,062 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new stake in American Public Education during the 3rd quarter valued at $54,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in American Public Education during the 1st quarter valued at $55,000. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in American Public Education during the 1st quarter valued at $58,000. 79.62% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Public Education Stock Performance

Shares of APEI opened at $12.57 on Wednesday. American Public Education has a 52 week low of $3.76 and a 52 week high of $16.39. The stock has a market cap of $220.73 million, a P/E ratio of -4.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.29. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $12.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $9.43. The company has a quick ratio of 2.94, a current ratio of 2.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, March 5th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.50. American Public Education had a negative net margin of 7.87% and a positive return on equity of 3.26%. The company had revenue of $152.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $150.54 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that American Public Education will post 0.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on APEI. B. Riley reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $15.00 price target (up from $12.00) on shares of American Public Education in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on American Public Education from $6.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Barrington Research boosted their price target on American Public Education from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd.

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.