Top Performer for Wednesday

American Public Education, Inc. (APEI - Analyst Report) continued its habit for better-than-expected quarterly earnings by posting 27 cents for its fourth quarter, which beat the consensus of 23 cents by more than 17%. A year ago, APEI earned 19 cents.

Over the past 4 quarters, the company has now amassed an average surprise of 28%.

Revenues in the quarter jumped 49% to $31.5 million from $21.2 million. Meanwhile, net course registrations surged 50% to 41,850.

The company attributed its results to "providing affordable, high-quality degree programs to the military and public service communities."

In addition, schools companies have performed better than most during economic downturns, as people look to improve their skills in order to better compete in a difficult jobs market.

This is underscored by the fact that there are 6 other schools companies on today's Zacks #1 Rank List, including Apollo Group (APOL - Snapshot Report), Capella Education (CPLA - Analyst Report), Career Education Corporation (CECO - Snapshot Report), Corinthian Colleges (COCO - Snapshot Report), Grand Canyon (LOPE - Snapshot Report) and ITT Educational (ESI - Analyst Report).

Earnings estimates for this year are up 2.6% over the past 3 months, including a slight pickup of a penny over the past 30 days.

The company makes the grade for the Zacks #1 Rank Top Performers List today as shares are up more than 8%.