Apollo Group Soars 11.8% After Beating Estimates (APOL)

Shares of Apollo Group, Inc. APOL, the owner of the University of Phoenix, are trading up 11.8% at $40.19 per share during the Tuesday afternoon trading session. On Monday after the market closed, the company reported income from continuing operations of $238.9 million, or $1.63 per share, up from $229.0 million, or $1.47 per share, a year earlier. Analysts had expected earnings of $1.35 per share. Co-chief executive officer and chairman Greg Cappelli said, “During the first quarter of fiscal 2011, we began the important process of implementing several of the key strategic initiatives that we've been developing in recent quarters and that are designed to enhance the student experience, expand student protections and ensure that we enroll students who we believe have a greater likelihood to succeed in our programs.” The day's range for shares of Apollo Group, Inc has been between $38.06 and $40.35 per share. The average price target of analysts who cover Apollo Group, Inc. (APOL) is $49.87 per share. Volume of 7.9 million shares is already more than double the daily average volume of 3.9 million shares. Apollo Group, Inc is one of the world's largest private education providers and has been in the education business for more than 35 years. Read more from Benzinga's Company news.