Investopedia: Apollo Group A Study In Pain

The for-profit education sector continues to offer up new answers for the question, "How much worse can it get?" The economy, tighter credit and a tarnished sector reputation continue to drive away prospective students, and the entire sector is looking to discounts, tuition cuts and cost-cutting to stanch the bleeding. While Apollo Group (Nasdaq:APOL) is likely to survive, investing in it still feels a little like reaching out for a falling knife.

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http://www.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2013/Apollo-Group-A-Study-In-Pain-APOL-LOPE-APEI-EDU0110.aspx

Investopedia: New Oriental Not Too Cool For School

Sometimes a little perspective is in order. New Oriental (NYSE:EDU) gets well-deserved plaudits for being the largest private education provider in China, and yet the company's revenue is about one-tenth that of Apollo Group (Nasdaq:APOL), the operator of University of Phoenix and the largest for-profit education company in the U.S. And yet, Apollo's enterprise value is only about 50% larger than that of New Oriental. That raises some interesting questions about the sort of growth potential New Oriental has, as well as how much of that growth has already been put into the stock by enthusiastic new shareholders.

A Strong End to the Fiscal Year  
New Oriental certainly gave out a graduation present of its own as it closed its fiscal year. Revenue rose 59% for the fourth quarter, handily beating even the high end of the analyst range. Given that enrollment was up about 12% for the quarter, it is pretty clear that New Oriental is seeing some strong trends with its pricing and mix. 


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http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2011/New-Oriental-Not-Too-Cool-For-School-EDU-APOL-WPO-REVU-AMBO-DL-GEDU0719.aspx

Profits In For-Profit Education

Whether it is a late-night ad for a graphic design school, an ad in the middle of Good Eats for cooking school, or yet another ad about some IT training program that "changed a person's life", for profit-education is a fixture in the United States. The question remains, though, as to whether there is still money to be made in a sector that has had quite a long stretch of exceptional growth. 

Apollo Group (Nasdaq:APOL)
Apollo generates nearly all of its revenue through the well-known University of Phoenix program; arguably the for-profit program that comes closest to a traditional university in terms of the breadth and depth of programs it offers. The largest player by enrollment, the company has had some difficulties, as the SEC is informally investigating certain revenue recognition policies and the company has come under criticism for the quality of it academic programs.

Nevertheless, the valuation here is very appealing and even if the Department of Education tightens standards for this industry, Apollo stock should have room to move higher. 


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http://stocks.investopedia.com/stock-analysis/2010/Profits-In-For-Profit-Education-APOL-CECO-DV-ESI-EDU-UTI0624.aspx