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American Public Education (APEI) Up 1.4% Since Last Earnings Report: Can It Continue?
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It has been about a month since the last earnings report for American Public Education (APEI - Free Report) . Shares have added about 1.4% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.
Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is American Public Education due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important catalysts.
American Public Q2 Earnings Lag, Fall Y/Y
American Public Education, Inc. reported lower-than-expected second-quarter 2021 results. The top and bottom lines missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate and declined on a year-over-year basis. All the significant metrics were in line with management’s respective guidance.
APEI's CEO, Angela Selden, said, "While Army IgnitED started to process Tuition Assistance in the third week of July and we have begun to enroll students through that portal, the system does not yet appear to be operating at full capacity and the enrollment ramp has been slow. Despite this, we have taken several steps to shore up enrollment momentum and improve financial performance in the back half of 2021."
Delving Deeper
Adjusted earnings of 3 cents per share lagged the consensus estimate of 5 cents by 40% and decreased a whopping 93.3% on a year-over-year basis.
Total revenues of $78 million missed the consensus mark of $79 million by 0.9% and fell 5% from the year-ago period. The downside was mainly due to the outage of the Army's new tuition assistance registration portal — Army IgnitED — for the whole quarter. This was partially offset by strong contribution from Hondros. Enrollments at HCN continued to be at a record high level for the quarter.
For the quarter, total costs and expenses increased 4% year over year to $76 million. Adjusted EBITDA decreased 36% year over year to $9.9 million.
Segment Discussion
APEI: Revenues of $66.9 million declined 9% from the year-ago period. Within the APEI segment, American Public University System’s (“APUS”) student enrollment grew 7% from the comparable year-ago period to 89,100 at June-end. For the quarter, total net course registration slipped 8% from the year-ago period to 82,600.
HCN: Segment’s revenues rose 29.4% year over year to $11.1 million owing to improved enrollments. Total student enrollment at HCN increased 36% from the prior-year quarter to 2,380, marking the highest in the school’s history.
For the quarter, inter-segment elimination totaled $13 million.
Financials
At June-end, American Public had total cash and cash equivalents of $317 million compared with $227.7 million at 2020-end. Capital expenditure totaled $3 million for the first half compared with $2.9 million in the year-ago period.
Third-Quarter Guidance
The company expects total revenues to fall 4-7% year over year. In the year-ago period, revenues grew 16.6% year over year. It anticipates the bottom line within 0-5 cents per share, indicating a significant decline from the year-ago reported earnings of 18 cents. Adjusted EBITDA is anticipated within $6.5-$8.5 million.
At APUS, total net course registrations are likely to decline 8-13% year over year to 78,500-83,000. HCN’s total student enrollment is expected to grow more than 2,300 or 19% from the prior year.
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?
In the past month, investors have witnessed a downward trend in fresh estimates. The consensus estimate has shifted -89.83% due to these changes.
VGM Scores
At this time, American Public Education has a poor Growth Score of F, a grade with the same score on the momentum front. However, the stock was allocated a grade of B on the value side, putting it in the top 40% for this investment strategy.
Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of D. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.
Outlook
Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift. Notably, American Public Education has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.
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American Public Education (APEI) Up 1.4% Since Last Earnings Report: Can It Continue?
It has been about a month since the last earnings report for American Public Education (APEI - Free Report) . Shares have added about 1.4% in that time frame, underperforming the S&P 500.
Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is American Public Education due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important catalysts.
American Public Q2 Earnings Lag, Fall Y/Y
American Public Education, Inc. reported lower-than-expected second-quarter 2021 results. The top and bottom lines missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate and declined on a year-over-year basis. All the significant metrics were in line with management’s respective guidance.
APEI's CEO, Angela Selden, said, "While Army IgnitED started to process Tuition Assistance in the third week of July and we have begun to enroll students through that portal, the system does not yet appear to be operating at full capacity and the enrollment ramp has been slow. Despite this, we have taken several steps to shore up enrollment momentum and improve financial performance in the back half of 2021."
Delving Deeper
Adjusted earnings of 3 cents per share lagged the consensus estimate of 5 cents by 40% and decreased a whopping 93.3% on a year-over-year basis.
Total revenues of $78 million missed the consensus mark of $79 million by 0.9% and fell 5% from the year-ago period. The downside was mainly due to the outage of the Army's new tuition assistance registration portal — Army IgnitED — for the whole quarter. This was partially offset by strong contribution from Hondros. Enrollments at HCN continued to be at a record high level for the quarter.
For the quarter, total costs and expenses increased 4% year over year to $76 million. Adjusted EBITDA decreased 36% year over year to $9.9 million.
Segment Discussion
APEI: Revenues of $66.9 million declined 9% from the year-ago period. Within the APEI segment, American Public University System’s (“APUS”) student enrollment grew 7% from the comparable year-ago period to 89,100 at June-end. For the quarter, total net course registration slipped 8% from the year-ago period to 82,600.
HCN: Segment’s revenues rose 29.4% year over year to $11.1 million owing to improved enrollments. Total student enrollment at HCN increased 36% from the prior-year quarter to 2,380, marking the highest in the school’s history.
For the quarter, inter-segment elimination totaled $13 million.
Financials
At June-end, American Public had total cash and cash equivalents of $317 million compared with $227.7 million at 2020-end. Capital expenditure totaled $3 million for the first half compared with $2.9 million in the year-ago period.
Third-Quarter Guidance
The company expects total revenues to fall 4-7% year over year. In the year-ago period, revenues grew 16.6% year over year. It anticipates the bottom line within 0-5 cents per share, indicating a significant decline from the year-ago reported earnings of 18 cents. Adjusted EBITDA is anticipated within $6.5-$8.5 million.
At APUS, total net course registrations are likely to decline 8-13% year over year to 78,500-83,000. HCN’s total student enrollment is expected to grow more than 2,300 or 19% from the prior year.
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?
In the past month, investors have witnessed a downward trend in fresh estimates. The consensus estimate has shifted -89.83% due to these changes.
VGM Scores
At this time, American Public Education has a poor Growth Score of F, a grade with the same score on the momentum front. However, the stock was allocated a grade of B on the value side, putting it in the top 40% for this investment strategy.
Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of D. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.
Outlook
Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift. Notably, American Public Education has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.