American Public Education Inc. went IPO

American Public Education Inc. — parent company of distance learning provider American Public University System went IPO last Friday. Here is the news.

American Public Shares Surge in Debut
Friday November 9, 2:24 pm ET
American Public Shares Climb 92 Percent in Debut After IPO Prices Higher Than Expected

NEW YORK (AP) -- Shares of online postsecondary education provider American Public Education Inc. surged as high as 92 percent in their first day of trading Friday after the company's initial public offering priced above an already raised price range.
Shares climbed $14.84, or 74.2 percent, to $34.84 in afternoon trading. Shares traded as high as $38.36 and as low as $29.23 after opening at the offering price of $20.

Earlier this week, the company raised the expected price range of its offering of 4.7 million shares to between $18 and $19 per share from a previous range of $15 to $17 per share.

American Public Education provides online postsecondary education programs, which are regionally and nationally accredited, to the military and public service communities. The company serves roughly 25,000 part-time adult students throughout the U.S. and in more than 135 foreign countries. More than 80 percent of the students serve in the U.S. military, and many are eligible for tuition assistance through the Department of Defense.

For the six months ended June 30, American Public Education increased its earnings to $3.6 million, from $933,000 in the first half of 2006. During the same period, the company's revenue surged 78 percent to $30.3 million, from $17 million.

The stock's performance comes as no surprise to analysts, who had expected the offering to be one of the week's premier deals, based on the company's solid financials and position in the fast-growing segment of online education.

"They are still small, but have done a good job growing their revenue over the last few years," said Melanie Hase, an analyst at Renaissance Capital's IPOHome.com last week. "They have a good business model."

Eduventures LLC, an education consulting and research firm, estimates that by the end of 2008, the number of online students will total about 2.1 million. Based on projections for higher-education enrollment by the National Center for Education Statistics, this equals about 12 percent of all students in degree-granting institutions by 2008.

And there are more than 2.1 million active and reserve military professionals in the U.S. Armed Forces, with about 300,000 new service members enlisted each year, according to the company's prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Shares are trading on the Nasdaq under the symbol "APEI."

 

Beginning of the end. Their business plan is centered around an attractive niche market. Bees and nectar - within ten years they will be acquired by much larger competitors.