B. Riley Financial Boosts American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI) Price Target to $68.00

Posted by Brian Himes on May 14th, 2026

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI – Get Free Report) had its price target upped by equities researchers at B. Riley Financial from $67.00 to $68.00 in a research note issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the stock. B. Riley Financial’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 28.52% from the company’s previous close.

APEI has been the topic of several other research reports. Zacks Research raised American Public Education from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 12th. DA Davidson increased their target price on American Public Education from $48.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Griffin Securities set a $53.00 target price on American Public Education in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Wall Street Zen cut American Public Education from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Finally, Northland Securities set a $51.00 target price on American Public Education in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.13.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on APEI

American Public Education Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ APEI opened at $52.91 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 3.46, a current ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $55.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $44.43. The firm has a market cap of $970.37 million, a PE ratio of 27.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.46. American Public Education has a twelve month low of $25.80 and a twelve month high of $61.59.

American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $174.74 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $173.73 million. American Public Education had a return on equity of 14.02% and a net margin of 6.13%.American Public Education has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.340-0.390 EPS. Analysts expect that American Public Education will post 2.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at American Public Education

In other news, insider 325 Capital Llc sold 65,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.78, for a total value of $3,495,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 836,234 shares in the company, valued at $44,972,664.52. This trade represents a 7.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Nuno S. Fernandes sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.08, for a total value of $59,488.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 83,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,492,696. The trade was a 1.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 377,071 shares of company stock worth $20,753,569. 10.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of APEI. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in shares of American Public Education by 4.3% in the first 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. lifted its holdings in shares of American Public Education by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 538,440 shares of the company’s stock valued at $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% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 97,294 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,172,000 after buying an additional 6,671 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of American Public Education by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 8,495 shares of the company’s stock valued at $259,000 after buying an additional 720 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of American Public Education by 40.5% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,914 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,000 after buying an additional 552 shares during the period. 79.62% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More American Public Education News

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

Positive Sentiment: APEI reported Q1 earnings of $0.94 per share, well above the $0.61 consensus, and revenue also topped estimates; management raised its 2026 outlook, with Zacks noting stronger Military+ activity and Health+ enrollment helped margins. Article Title
Positive Sentiment: B. Riley Financial raised its price target on APEI to $68 from $67 and reiterated a buy rating, signaling continued confidence in the company’s earnings outlook. Article Title
Positive Sentiment: Northland Securities lifted its earnings estimates for APEI across 2026 and 2027, including FY2026 EPS to $2.53 from $2.35, Q2 2026 EPS to $0.37 from $0.35, and FY2027 EPS to $3.05 from $3.04, reflecting improved expectations after the earnings report. Article Title
Neutral Sentiment: Northland also trimmed its Q4 2026 EPS forecast to $0.81 from $0.90, but that weaker near-term view was offset by higher full-year estimates and a stronger longer-term outlook.

American Public Education Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.