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Side-by-side financial comparison of AMERICAN PUBLIC EDUCATION INC (APEI) and DOUGLAS DYNAMICS, INC (PLOW). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
DOUGLAS DYNAMICS, INC is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($184.5M vs $158.3M, roughly 1.2× AMERICAN PUBLIC EDUCATION INC). AMERICAN PUBLIC EDUCATION INC runs the higher net margin — 8.0% vs 7.0%, a 1.0% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, DOUGLAS DYNAMICS, INC posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (28.6% vs -3.5%). DOUGLAS DYNAMICS, INC produced more free cash flow last quarter ($92.8M vs $-15.6M). Over the past eight quarters, DOUGLAS DYNAMICS, INC's revenue compounded faster (38.9% CAGR vs 1.3%).
Strategic Education, Inc. (SEI) is an education services holding company and is formerly known as Strayer Education, Inc. The company owns for-profit, online Capella University and Strayer University, as well as non-degree programs schools such as DevMountain, Hackbright Academy, and Sophia Learning.
General Dynamics Corporation (GD) is an American industrial and technology company based in Reston, Virginia. It is primarily a developer and producer of advanced military equipment of a wide variety, such as nuclear submarines, main battle tanks, and armoured fighting vehicles. It is also the manufacturer of the civilian aviation Gulfstream business jets and a provider of information technology services. The company is the 3rd largest of the top 100 contractors of the U.S. federal government...
APEI vs PLOW — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q4 FY2025
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $158.3M | $184.5M |
| Net Profit | $12.6M | $12.8M |
| Gross Margin | 56.4% | 26.1% |
| Operating Margin | 12.0% | 10.5% |
| Net Margin | 8.0% | 7.0% |
| Revenue YoY | -3.5% | 28.6% |
| Net Profit YoY | -2.7% | 62.3% |
| EPS (diluted) | $0.67 | $0.54 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q4 25 | $158.3M | $184.5M | ||
| Q3 25 | $163.2M | $162.1M | ||
| Q2 25 | $162.8M | $194.3M | ||
| Q1 25 | $164.6M | $115.1M | ||
| Q4 24 | $164.1M | $143.5M | ||
| Q3 24 | $153.1M | $129.4M | ||
| Q2 24 | $152.9M | $199.9M | ||
| Q1 24 | $154.4M | $95.7M |
| Q4 25 | $12.6M | $12.8M | ||
| Q3 25 | $5.6M | $8.0M | ||
| Q2 25 | $4.5M | $26.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $8.9M | $148.0K | ||
| Q4 24 | $13.0M | $7.9M | ||
| Q3 24 | $2.3M | $32.3M | ||
| Q2 24 | $371.0K | $24.3M | ||
| Q1 24 | $516.0K | $-8.4M |
| Q4 25 | 56.4% | 26.1% | ||
| Q3 25 | 54.2% | 23.5% | ||
| Q2 25 | 51.8% | 31.0% | ||
| Q1 25 | 54.5% | 24.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | 56.3% | 24.9% | ||
| Q3 24 | 50.8% | 23.9% | ||
| Q2 24 | 50.2% | 30.7% | ||
| Q1 24 | 53.1% | 19.8% |
| Q4 25 | 12.0% | 10.5% | ||
| Q3 25 | 5.9% | 8.7% | ||
| Q2 25 | 4.3% | 19.0% | ||
| Q1 25 | 7.4% | 2.8% | ||
| Q4 24 | 13.1% | 9.0% | ||
| Q3 24 | 2.7% | 35.4% | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.5% | 18.2% | ||
| Q1 24 | 3.4% | -6.7% |
| Q4 25 | 8.0% | 7.0% | ||
| Q3 25 | 3.4% | 4.9% | ||
| Q2 25 | 2.8% | 13.4% | ||
| Q1 25 | 5.4% | 0.1% | ||
| Q4 24 | 7.9% | 5.5% | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.5% | 24.9% | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.2% | 12.2% | ||
| Q1 24 | 0.3% | -8.7% |
| Q4 25 | $0.67 | $0.54 | ||
| Q3 25 | $0.30 | $0.33 | ||
| Q2 25 | $-0.02 | $1.09 | ||
| Q1 25 | $0.41 | $0.00 | ||
| Q4 24 | $0.63 | $0.35 | ||
| Q3 24 | $0.04 | $1.36 | ||
| Q2 24 | $-0.06 | $1.02 | ||
| Q1 24 | $-0.06 | $-0.37 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $174.1M | — |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $94.7M | $144.0M |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $294.8M | $281.4M |
| Total Assets | $521.4M | $626.7M |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 0.32× | 0.51× |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $174.1M | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $191.3M | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $174.9M | — | ||
| Q1 25 | $161.6M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $131.9M | — | ||
| Q3 24 | $135.4M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $129.8M | — | ||
| Q1 24 | $125.3M | — |
| Q4 25 | $94.7M | $144.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | $94.4M | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $94.1M | — | ||
| Q1 25 | $93.7M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $93.4M | $147.5M | ||
| Q3 24 | $93.1M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $92.8M | — | ||
| Q1 24 | $95.0M | — |
| Q4 25 | $294.8M | $281.4M | ||
| Q3 25 | $279.3M | $275.3M | ||
| Q2 25 | $272.2M | $273.3M | ||
| Q1 25 | $310.0M | $258.9M | ||
| Q4 24 | $303.9M | $264.2M | ||
| Q3 24 | $290.4M | $260.8M | ||
| Q2 24 | $288.7M | $236.7M | ||
| Q1 24 | $288.5M | $217.2M |
| Q4 25 | $521.4M | $626.7M | ||
| Q3 25 | $525.3M | $694.9M | ||
| Q2 25 | $537.4M | $671.5M | ||
| Q1 25 | $578.7M | $621.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $570.1M | $590.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | $569.6M | $665.6M | ||
| Q2 24 | $560.7M | $617.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $559.0M | $577.1M |
| Q4 25 | 0.32× | 0.51× | ||
| Q3 25 | 0.34× | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.35× | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.30× | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.31× | 0.56× | ||
| Q3 24 | 0.32× | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.32× | — | ||
| Q1 24 | 0.33× | — |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | $-11.6M | $95.9M |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $-15.6M | $92.8M |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | -9.9% | 50.3% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 2.6% | 1.7% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | -0.92× | 7.47× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $46.1M | $63.6M |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $-11.6M | $95.9M | ||
| Q3 25 | $21.7M | $-8.5M | ||
| Q2 25 | $14.8M | $-11.4M | ||
| Q1 25 | $37.0M | $-1.3M | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.6M | $74.4M | ||
| Q3 24 | $14.1M | $-14.2M | ||
| Q2 24 | $12.5M | $2.5M | ||
| Q1 24 | $20.7M | $-21.6M |
| Q4 25 | $-15.6M | $92.8M | ||
| Q3 25 | $17.5M | $-11.4M | ||
| Q2 25 | $11.1M | $-14.3M | ||
| Q1 25 | $33.1M | $-3.5M | ||
| Q4 24 | $-1.8M | $70.2M | ||
| Q3 24 | $7.8M | $-15.2M | ||
| Q2 24 | $7.3M | $836.0K | ||
| Q1 24 | $14.5M | $-22.4M |
| Q4 25 | -9.9% | 50.3% | ||
| Q3 25 | 10.7% | -7.1% | ||
| Q2 25 | 6.8% | -7.4% | ||
| Q1 25 | 20.1% | -3.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | -1.1% | 48.9% | ||
| Q3 24 | 5.1% | -11.8% | ||
| Q2 24 | 4.7% | 0.4% | ||
| Q1 24 | 9.4% | -23.4% |
| Q4 25 | 2.6% | 1.7% | ||
| Q3 25 | 2.6% | 1.8% | ||
| Q2 25 | 2.3% | 1.5% | ||
| Q1 25 | 2.4% | 1.9% | ||
| Q4 24 | 2.0% | 2.9% | ||
| Q3 24 | 4.1% | 0.8% | ||
| Q2 24 | 3.4% | 0.8% | ||
| Q1 24 | 4.0% | 0.8% |
| Q4 25 | -0.92× | 7.47× | ||
| Q3 25 | 3.90× | -1.07× | ||
| Q2 25 | 3.29× | -0.44× | ||
| Q1 25 | 4.16× | -9.03× | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.12× | 9.41× | ||
| Q3 24 | 6.22× | -0.44× | ||
| Q2 24 | 33.57× | 0.10× | ||
| Q1 24 | 40.20× | — |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
APEI
| American Public Education Inc Segment | $71.0M | 45% |
| Rasmussen University Segment | $66.6M | 42% |
| Hondros College Of Nursing Segment | $20.7M | 13% |
PLOW
| Work Truck Solutions | $101.5M | 55% |
| Transferred At Point In Time | $83.1M | 45% |
