American Public Education (NASDAQ:APEI)

Lots of things to like here:

-Ranked 22nd for online bachelor programs by US News (#1 for profit)

- Only 22% of students looking for associates degree (which are the students most likely to default)

- Degree costs 19% less for bachelors and 33% for masters compared against state universities and has not raised tuition in 12 years

- Only 35 percent withdrawal rate for bachelor’s degree students

- No accreditation issues

- American Public is very upfront about degree costs and graduation rates on their website (which for an online education co is pretty impressive.)

APEI has a niche with military services that is good to have now that troops have been/are returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan and also has an exclusive deal with Wal-Mart on the civilian side.

Z-3

5412

They have solid margins and no debt. There will also be a lot of opportunity within the next few years.

HG

Given the number of soldiers coming home in the next few years, as well as the potential to expand into other areas of Internet education, I like the future of this company a lot. I especially like that it is one of the low cost providers. If they can keep their tuition low and expand to new areas, they could expand many times over,

This is a small/mid cap high growth stock that should outperform the S&P during the bull market.

AMU, which is part of APEI, is my alma mater, but that reason alone is not why I like them. True, I realized as I went there for my graduate degree how awesome they are. They use technology in a way that most universities are still playing catch up on. as with most industries (and yes education is a very big industry) those still playing catch-up do not want to part with the old ways. Instead they will tout why an on-line education is bad, instead of taking advantage of the benefits it has. By doing this, they continue to fall further behind. Just ask Blockbuster or Borders how not keeping up with the way technolgy and the internet are changing your industry will affect your business. I was able to take classes from subject matter experts whether they lived in Hawaii or Virginia, or even another country. In addition to this, they cater to military and other sectors that have money to spend on education through GI bill and tuition assistance programs. Now there is a concept! Cater to the folks that have the money to buy your product... that could really catch on in business! Most importantly, they are not a diploma mill, they have full Regional accredidation, which makes all the difference in the world. Getting my MA from AMU was real work, and certainly more challenging than my undergrad degree which I got at a conventional brick and mortar school. Aslo, they continue to grow. They are continually developing new programs, and their enrollment constantly continues to increase.

Yet, all of this is not alone the reason I like them, as I stated earlier. I like them because it is a solid business with solid fundamentals. They run their business end just as well as they run their schools. I am not sure how many stars CAPS gives them, as I do not look at that when determining my picks, but if it is anything less than five, then they are wrong. It would just show that CAPS knows nothing about them.

Solid education service in a down market. Primary "customers" are government and military. Seems like it has a secure future and I'm buying when I believe the stock is starting to recover from a low point.

http://seekingalpha.com/article/236454-20-profitable-stocks-with-low-peg-ratios?source=TheMotleyFool
4. American Public Education, Inc. (APEI): Business Services Industry. Market cap of $619.63M. PEG ratio at 0.91. EPS has grown by 41.62% over the past 5 years, with EPS growth projected at 25.00% over the next 5 years. Sales have grown by 45.16% over the past 5 years. Short float at 12.18%, which implies a short ratio of 7.46 days. The stock has gained 2.07% over the last year.

Teaming up with America's biggest retailer, Walmart, to offer online classes to Walmart employees will drive the sales and profits of this online uiniversity for years to come.

Speculating: Forbes #9 Best Small Company (November 2009)
PEG (5yr Expected) = .78
ROA: 26%
ROE: 35%
Quarterly Earning Growth (YOY): 66%
No debt (74 mil in cash)

buy

This account tracks the fast-growing shakers and movers and some of the riskier stocks on my watch list.

On-line education is where its at and this company does it right.

Underwent some distribution but now back up

Interesting niche

IBD

With military folks making their way back home in the coming years, this one is poised to pick up some of the government money going to educate vets.