American Public Education (APEI) Q4 2025 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Achieved consolidated revenue growth of 3.9% to $648.9M in 2025, with all three institutions posting gains despite a government shutdown, campus closures, and a divestiture.

• Adjusted EBITDA rose 18.6% to $85.7M, surpassing guidance; net income available to common stockholders increased 151.6% to $25.3M.

• Nursing and healthcare segments delivered strong results, offsetting federal shutdown impacts; Rasmussen revenue up 13.9%, Hondros up 11.4%.

• Simplified operations by redeeming preferred equity, selling corporate buildings, and divesting Graduate School USA; Department of Education lifted restrictions on Rasmussen.

• Exceeded guidance for revenue, adjusted EBITDA, net income, and EPS for both Q4 and full year 2025.

Financial highlights

• Q4 2025 revenue: $158.3M, down 3.5% year-over-year due to government shutdown and GSUSA sale; adjusted EBITDA: $28.7M (18.1% margin); net income: $12.6M ($0.67/share), up 9.6% year-over-year.

• Full year 2025 revenue: $648.9M (+3.9% YoY); adjusted EBITDA: $85.7M (+18.6% YoY); net income: $25.3M (+152% YoY); diluted EPS: $1.36 (+147.3% YoY).

• Cash and equivalents at year-end: $176.5M; net cash position: $80.1M.

• Refinanced debt, reducing principal to $90M–$96.4M, lowering borrowing rate by 375 bps, and extending maturity to 2031.

• Cash flows from operations increased 26.8% to $62.0M.

Outlook and guidance

• FY 2026 revenue guidance: $685M–$695M; adjusted EBITDA: $91.5M–$100.5M; net income: $41.3M–$47.6M; EPS: $2.15–$2.47.

• Q1 2026 revenue: $173M–$175M; adjusted EBITDA: $25.5M–$27M; net income: $11.1M–$12.2M.

• CapEx for 2026: $28M–$32M, with $7M allocated for new campus openings, mostly in the second half.

• Multi-year framework targets $890M–$1B revenue and 20%–21% EBITDA margin by 2029.