Apollo Education Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:APOL) reported fiscal third quarter financial results that outperformed the estimates of Wall Street analyst as it made significant progress in its strategy to differentiate the University of Phoenix.
The stock price of the company gained 2.46% to $30 per share at the time of this writing around 12:34 in the afternoon in New York following the release of its financial performance.
Apollo Education financial results
Apollo Education Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:APOL) generated earnings of $0.59 per diluted share or $0.76 per diluted share excluding special items, and it revenue was $799.9 million for the third quarter.
Wall Street analysts expected the company to deliver earnings of $0.66 per share and $793.4 million in revenue, according to data compiled by FatSet.
According to Apollo Education Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:APOL), the revenues of the University of Phoenix declined 19.2% year-over-year to $681.7 million. The total enrollment of the university dropped 15.9% to 241,900 students, and new enrollment fell 12.9% to 33,900 students during the quarter.
The enrollments for the University of Phoenix have been weak for several quarters due to strong competition and changes in regulations in the higher education industry.
Apollo Education Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:APOL) said its operating income for the third quarter was $113.1 million, slightly lower than its $132 million operating income in the same period a year ago.
The company has $800 million in unrestricted cash, cash equivalents and short-term marketable securities as of May 31, 2014. It has $ 201.7 million accounts receivable by the end of the quarter.
Greg Cappelli, CEO of Apollo Education Group, Inc. (NYSE:APOL) said, “During the third quarter, we continued our plan to realign the University of Phoenix by implementing our college-based strategy and also completing the rollout of our new learning platform across the university.”
In addition, Capelli said the company expanded its global network to South Africa, and it is now serving six continents through Apollo Global.
Apollo Education fiscal 2014 outlook
For the fiscal 2014, Apollo Education Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:APOL) projected that it would be able to achieve revenues in the range of $3.04 billion to $3.06 billion; up from its previous estimate of around $3 billion to $3.1 billion.
The company expected its adjusted operating profit to be in the range of $420 million to $435 million; higher than its previous estimate of $400 million to $450 million.
Apollo Education appoints new president of University of Phoenix
Apollo Education Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:APOL) announced the appointment Tim Slottow as the new president of the University of Phoenix.
“Tim shares our commitment to the mission of the University of Phoenix, and to delivering quality education that helps students achieve academic and personal success to meet their individual and professional goals,” according to Capelli.
