Apollo Group Q3 results top Wall Street view

(Reuters) - For-profit education provider Apollo Group Inc (APOL.O) posted a 45 percent increase in third-quarter profit, beating Wall Street expectations, helped by an increase in degreed enrollment.

For the quarter ended May 31, Apollo Group reported net income of $201.1 million, or $1.26 a share, compared with $139.1 million, or 85 cents a share, a year ago.

Revenue rose 26 percent to $1.05 billion.

Analysts on average were expecting the parent company of the University of Phoenix to earn $1.12 a share, on revenue of $1.04 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.

Total degreed enrollment rose 22 percent to 420,700, while new degreed enrollment increased 23 percent.

Improved student retention at University of Phoenix also helped drive profits, the company said.

Shares of the Phoenix-based company were trading up 4 percent at $68.65 after the bell. They closed down nearly 4 percent at $65.99 Monday on Nasdaq.

(Reporting by Biswarup Gooptu in Bangalore; Editing by Vinu Pilakkott)