Sept 30 (Reuters) - The owner of the University of

Phoenix is targeting a valuation of up to $1.2 billion in its

U.S. initial public offering, it said on Tuesday, setting the

stage for its stock market return after more than eight years.

Existing stockholders of Phoenix Education Partners are

seeking up to $140.3 million by offering 4.25 million shares

priced between $31 and $33 apiece.

Private capital firm Apollo Global is selling 3.55

million shares, while investment firm Vistria Group is

offloading 0.7 million shares.

The IPO pickup has lately broadened out to private equity

deals, with a steady stream of sponsor-backed companies hitting

the new listings market in recent months.

The University of Phoenix, founded in 1976 by John Sperling,

provides post-secondary education services, mainly to working

adults in the U.S.

The Phoenix, Arizona-based university currently offers 72

degree-granting and 33 non-degree certificate programs across

disciplines.

DROPPED SALE

Phoenix Education's predecessor, Apollo Education Group, was

taken private in 2017 in a $1.1 billion deal by a consortium

including Vistria and Apollo.

The university, under Apollo and Vistria's stewardship,

exited non-core programs and divested some operations, including

several international schools that it shared administrative

resources with.

In 2023, a non-profit affiliated with the University of

Idaho agreed to acquire the operations of the University of

Phoenix for $550 million. But the parties walked away from the

deal earlier this year.

Apollo will continue to control a majority of Phoenix

Education's voting power after the offering.

Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, BMO Capital Markets, and

Jefferies are the lead underwriters for the offering. Phoenix

Education will list on the New York Stock Exchange under the

symbol "PXED".

(Reporting by Arasu Kannagi Basil in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil

D'Silva and Shailesh Kuber)