Short Interest in American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI) Decreases By 7.7%

American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ:APEI) saw a significant drop in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 697,600 shares, a drop of 7.7% from the December 15th total of 756,200 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 118,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.9 days. Approximately 4.1% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Truist Financial boosted their target price on American Public Education from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. B. Riley boosted their price objective on shares of American Public Education from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Barrington Research raised their target price on shares of American Public Education from $18.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of American Public Education from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd.

American Public Education Trading Up 0.3 %

APEI stock traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $21.51. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 76,247 shares, compared to its average volume of 113,044. The firm has a market capitalization of $380.94 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.41, a PEG ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.29. American Public Education has a 1 year low of $10.15 and a 1 year high of $23.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 2.65 and a current ratio of 2.65. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $20.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $17.55.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Public Education

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of American Public Education during the second quarter valued at approximately $880,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in American Public Education by 0.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 404,168 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,963,000 after purchasing an additional 2,573 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in American Public Education by 14.5% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,004,011 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,651,000 after purchasing an additional 127,000 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of American Public Education by 27.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 275,889 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,069,000 after buying an additional 58,984 shares during the period. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC bought a new position in shares of American Public Education during the 3rd quarter worth $1,691,000. Institutional investors own 79.62% of the company’s stock.

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.