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Side-by-side financial comparison of AMERICAN PUBLIC EDUCATION INC (APEI) and USA Compression Partners, LP (USAC). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

USA Compression Partners, LP is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($252.5M vs $158.3M, roughly 1.6× AMERICAN PUBLIC EDUCATION INC). USA Compression Partners, LP runs the higher net margin — 11.0% vs 8.0%, a 3.0% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, USA Compression Partners, LP posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (2.7% vs -3.5%). USA Compression Partners, LP produced more free cash flow last quarter ($87.7M vs $-15.6M). Over the past eight quarters, USA Compression Partners, LP's revenue compounded faster (4.9% 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.

USA Compression Partners, LP is a US-based provider of natural gas compression services and related infrastructure solutions. It serves clients across the upstream, midstream, and downstream segments of the oil and gas industry, offering custom compression systems, maintenance, and operational support to facilitate efficient natural gas production, processing, and transportation.

APEI vs USAC — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
USAC
USAC
1.6× larger
USAC
$252.5M
$158.3M
APEI
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
USAC
USAC
+6.2% gap
USAC
2.7%
-3.5%
APEI
Higher net margin
USAC
USAC
3.0% more per $
USAC
11.0%
8.0%
APEI
More free cash flow
USAC
USAC
$103.4M more FCF
USAC
$87.7M
$-15.6M
APEI
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
USAC
USAC
Annualised
USAC
4.9%
1.3%
APEI

Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q4 FY2025

Metric
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Revenue
$158.3M
$252.5M
Net Profit
$12.6M
$27.8M
Gross Margin
56.4%
Operating Margin
12.0%
30.3%
Net Margin
8.0%
11.0%
Revenue YoY
-3.5%
2.7%
Net Profit YoY
-2.7%
9.1%
EPS (diluted)
$0.67

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.

Revenue
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
$158.3M
$252.5M
Q3 25
$163.2M
$250.3M
Q2 25
$162.8M
$250.1M
Q1 25
$164.6M
$245.2M
Q4 24
$164.1M
$245.9M
Q3 24
$153.1M
$240.0M
Q2 24
$152.9M
$235.3M
Q1 24
$154.4M
$229.3M
Net Profit
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
$12.6M
$27.8M
Q3 25
$5.6M
$34.5M
Q2 25
$4.5M
$28.6M
Q1 25
$8.9M
$20.5M
Q4 24
$13.0M
$25.4M
Q3 24
$2.3M
$19.3M
Q2 24
$371.0K
$31.2M
Q1 24
$516.0K
$23.6M
Gross Margin
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
56.4%
Q3 25
54.2%
Q2 25
51.8%
Q1 25
54.5%
Q4 24
56.3%
Q3 24
50.8%
Q2 24
50.2%
Q1 24
53.1%
Operating Margin
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
12.0%
30.3%
Q3 25
5.9%
33.5%
Q2 25
4.3%
30.6%
Q1 25
7.4%
28.3%
Q4 24
13.1%
30.3%
Q3 24
2.7%
31.5%
Q2 24
1.5%
32.9%
Q1 24
3.4%
29.2%
Net Margin
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
8.0%
11.0%
Q3 25
3.4%
13.8%
Q2 25
2.8%
11.4%
Q1 25
5.4%
8.4%
Q4 24
7.9%
10.3%
Q3 24
1.5%
8.1%
Q2 24
0.2%
13.3%
Q1 24
0.3%
10.3%
EPS (diluted)
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
$0.67
Q3 25
$0.30
Q2 25
$-0.02
Q1 25
$0.41
Q4 24
$0.63
Q3 24
$0.04
Q2 24
$-0.06
Q1 24
$-0.06

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.

Metric
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$174.1M
$8.6M
Total DebtLower is stronger
$94.7M
$2.5B
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$294.8M
Total Assets
$521.4M
$2.6B
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage
0.32×

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
$174.1M
$8.6M
Q3 25
$191.3M
Q2 25
$174.9M
$2.0K
Q1 25
$161.6M
$2.0K
Q4 24
$131.9M
$14.0K
Q3 24
$135.4M
$79.0K
Q2 24
$129.8M
$9.0K
Q1 24
$125.3M
$8.0K
Total Debt
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
$94.7M
$2.5B
Q3 25
$94.4M
$2.5B
Q2 25
$94.1M
$2.5B
Q1 25
$93.7M
$2.5B
Q4 24
$93.4M
$2.5B
Q3 24
$93.1M
$2.5B
Q2 24
$92.8M
$2.5B
Q1 24
$95.0M
$2.5B
Stockholders' Equity
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
$294.8M
Q3 25
$279.3M
Q2 25
$272.2M
Q1 25
$310.0M
Q4 24
$303.9M
Q3 24
$290.4M
Q2 24
$288.7M
Q1 24
$288.5M
Total Assets
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
$521.4M
$2.6B
Q3 25
$525.3M
$2.7B
Q2 25
$537.4M
$2.7B
Q1 25
$578.7M
$2.7B
Q4 24
$570.1M
$2.7B
Q3 24
$569.6M
$2.8B
Q2 24
$560.7M
$2.8B
Q1 24
$559.0M
$2.8B
Debt / Equity
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
0.32×
Q3 25
0.34×
Q2 25
0.35×
Q1 25
0.30×
Q4 24
0.31×
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
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$-11.6M
$139.5M
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
$-15.6M
$87.7M
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
-9.9%
34.8%
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
2.6%
20.5%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
-0.92×
5.02×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters
$46.1M
$277.0M

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
$-11.6M
$139.5M
Q3 25
$21.7M
$75.9M
Q2 25
$14.8M
$124.2M
Q1 25
$37.0M
$54.7M
Q4 24
$1.6M
$130.2M
Q3 24
$14.1M
$48.5M
Q2 24
$12.5M
$96.7M
Q1 24
$20.7M
$65.9M
Free Cash Flow
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
$-15.6M
$87.7M
Q3 25
$17.5M
$51.9M
Q2 25
$11.1M
$101.1M
Q1 25
$33.1M
$36.3M
Q4 24
$-1.8M
$101.2M
Q3 24
$7.8M
$19.8M
Q2 24
$7.3M
$48.2M
Q1 24
$14.5M
$-32.7M
FCF Margin
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
-9.9%
34.8%
Q3 25
10.7%
20.7%
Q2 25
6.8%
40.4%
Q1 25
20.1%
14.8%
Q4 24
-1.1%
41.1%
Q3 24
5.1%
8.2%
Q2 24
4.7%
20.5%
Q1 24
9.4%
-14.3%
Capex Intensity
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
2.6%
20.5%
Q3 25
2.6%
9.6%
Q2 25
2.3%
9.3%
Q1 25
2.4%
7.5%
Q4 24
2.0%
11.8%
Q3 24
4.1%
12.0%
Q2 24
3.4%
20.6%
Q1 24
4.0%
43.0%
Cash Conversion
APEI
APEI
USAC
USAC
Q4 25
-0.92×
5.02×
Q3 25
3.90×
2.20×
Q2 25
3.29×
4.35×
Q1 25
4.16×
2.66×
Q4 24
0.12×
5.12×
Q3 24
6.22×
2.51×
Q2 24
33.57×
3.10×
Q1 24
40.20×
2.80×

Financial Flow Comparison

Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

APEI
APEI

American Public Education Inc Segment$71.0M45%
Rasmussen University Segment$66.6M42%
Hondros College Of Nursing Segment$20.7M13%

USAC
USAC

Revenue From Contract Operations Excluding Revenue From Related Party$231.7M92%
Entities Affiliated With Energy Transfer LP$16.6M7%
Transferred At Point In Time$5.4M2%

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