American Public Education, Inc. $APEI Position Increased by Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.

Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI) by 949.5% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 108,609 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 98,260 shares during the period. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.’s holdings in American Public Education were worth $4,287,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. No Street GP LP bought a new stake in shares of American Public Education during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,365,000. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in American Public Education during the third quarter worth about $15,108,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in American Public Education by 76.1% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 389,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,867,000 after acquiring an additional 168,362 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in American Public Education by 122.9% in the third quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 294,386 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,619,000 after acquiring an additional 162,318 shares during the period. Finally, 4D Advisors LLC boosted its stake in American Public Education by 111.1% in the second quarter. 4D Advisors LLC now owns 285,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,681,000 after acquiring an additional 150,000 shares during the period. 79.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Nuno S. Fernandes sold 6,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.87, for a total transaction of $350,155.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 84,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,534,507.25. The trade was a 7.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Tanya Joy Axenson sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.68, for a total value of $1,113,600.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 49,917 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,779,378.56. This represents a 28.61% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 215,459 shares of company stock worth $11,968,144. Company insiders own 17.54% of the company’s stock.

American Public Education Trading Up 0.4%

NASDAQ:APEI opened at $54.52 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.09, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 3.46 and a current ratio of 3.46. American Public Education, Inc. has a 1 year low of $20.75 and a 1 year high of $58.69. The business has a fifty day moving average of $44.68 and a 200-day moving average of $38.88.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 12th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $158.33 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $151.61 million. American Public Education had a net margin of 4.86% and a return on equity of 11.30%. American Public Education has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.580-0.640 EPS. Equities analysts predict that American Public Education, Inc. will post 0.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Key American Public Education News

Here are the key news stories impacting American Public Education this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and price-target raises are supporting upside — DA Davidson boosted its target to $58 and other brokers have lifted targets recently, reinforcing buy-side momentum after APEI’s Q4 beat. DA Davidson Price Target Raise
• Positive Sentiment: Fundamentals and estimates improving: APEI posted an EPS and revenue beat for Q4 and provided Q1 EPS guidance (0.580–0.640), and recent upward earnings estimate revisions (highlighted by Zacks) support the bullish narrative. Zacks Coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest reports show anomalous zero-share totals and NaN changes (days-to-cover = 0.0) — this appears to be a data/reporting issue rather than a real spike in short activity, so treat short-interest signals cautiously.
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling this week could pressure the stock — 325 Capital LLC sold large blocks (multiple sales mid-March totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars), and a few senior executives also sold shares. These sizable disposals may create near-term selling pressure or raise questions about timing; filings are available via the SEC. 325 Capital/SEC Filing

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on APEI shares. Lake Street Capital increased their price target on American Public Education from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on American Public Education from $38.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. William Blair set a $58.00 price objective on American Public Education in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Barrington Research increased their target price on American Public Education from $51.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of American Public Education in a research note on Monday, December 29th. 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.50.

About American Public Education

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.