NEW YORK – Apollo Education Group said Thursday that its first-quarter net income dropped 66 percent as student enrollment for the University of Phoenix fell.
The for-profit education company also posted a disappointing outlook, and its shares fell more than 12 percent.
Enrollment at for-profit schools has fallen amid increased scrutiny and criticism from government officials and regulators. At the University of Phoenix, first-quarter enrollment fell 13.5 percent to 227,400 from 263,000 the year before.
Apollo reported net income of $33.8 million, or 31 cents per share, in the three months ending Nov. 30, compared with $98.8 million, or 87 cents per share, in the same quarter a year ago.
Excluding one-time items, it reported earnings of 44 cents per share. Analysts expected earnings of 42 cents per share, according to FactSet.
Revenue fell 15 percent to $719.1 million from $848.1 million. Analysts expected revenue of $728 million.
For the second quarter, the company expects revenue between $580 million and $595 million, below the $610 million analysts expected. For the full year, it expects revenue between $2.74 billion and $2.80 billion, below the $2.81 billion analysts expected.
Shares of Phoenix-based Apollo Education Group Inc. fell $3.91, or 12.3 percent, to $27.95 in morning trading Thursday.
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