Have you been paying attention to shares of American Public Education (APEI)? Shares have been on the move with the stock up 9.3% over the past month. The stock hit a new 52-week high of $46.06 in the previous session. American Public Education has gained 17.2% since the start of the year compared to the -4% gain for the Zacks Consumer Discretionary sector and the 2% return for the Zacks Schools industry.
What's Driving the Outperformance?
The stock has a great record of positive earnings surprises, having beaten the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the last four quarters. In its last earnings report on November 10, 2025, American Public Education reported EPS of $0.3 versus consensus estimate of -$0.09.
For the current fiscal year, American Public Education is expected to post earnings of $2.23 per share on $642.33 in revenues. Meanwhile, for the next fiscal year, the company is expected to earn $2.64 per share on $687.98 in revenues. This represents a year-over-year change of 106.51% and 7.11%, respectively.
Valuation Metrics
American Public Education may be at a 52-week high right now, but what might the future hold for the stock? A key aspect of this question is taking a look at valuation metrics in order to determine if the company is due for a pullback from this level.
On this front, we can look at the Zacks Style Scores, as they provide investors with an additional way to sort through stocks (beyond looking at the Zacks Rank of a security). The individual style scores for Value, Growth, Momentum and the combined VGM Score run from A through F. The idea behind the style scores is to help investors pick the most appropriate Zacks Rank stocks based on their individual investment style.
American Public Education has a Value Score of B. The stock's Growth and Momentum Scores are A and F, respectively, giving the company a VGM Score of A.
In terms of its value breakdown, the stock currently trades at 19.9X current fiscal year EPS estimates, which is a premium to the peer industry average of 14X. On a trailing cash flow basis, the stock currently trades at 21.3X versus its peer group's average of 13.4X. Additionally, the stock has a PEG ratio of 1.33. This isn't enough to put the company in the top echelon of all stocks we cover from a value perspective.
Zacks Rank
We also need to look at the Zacks Rank for the stock, as this is even more important than the company's VGM Score. Fortunately, American Public Education currently has a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy) thanks to favorable earnings estimate revisions from covering analysts.
Since we recommend that investors select stocks carrying Zacks Rank of 1 (Strong Buy) or 2 (Buy) and Style Scores of A or B, it looks as if American Public Education fits the bill. Thus, it seems as though American Public Education shares could have potential in the weeks and months to come.
How Does APEI Stack Up to the Competition?
Shares of APEI have been soaring, and the company still appears to be a decent choice, but what about the rest of the industry? One industry peer that looks good is TAL Education Group (TAL). TAL has a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy) and a Value Score of B, a Growth Score of A, and a Momentum Score of B.
Earnings were strong last quarter. TAL Education Group beat our consensus estimate by 316.67%, and for the current fiscal year, TAL is expected to post earnings of $0.80 per share on revenue of $3 billion.
Shares of TAL Education Group have gained 1.6% over the past month, and currently trade at a forward P/E of 17.35X and a P/CF of 48.44X.
The Schools industry is in the top 23% of all the industries we have in our universe, so it looks like there are some nice tailwinds for APEI and TAL, even beyond their own solid fundamental situation.
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American Public Education, Inc. (APEI): Free Stock Analysis Report TAL Education Group (TAL): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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