Lincoln Educational Services Corporation $LINC Shares Sold by Heartland Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Heartland Advisors Inc. sharply reduced its Lincoln Educational Services stake by 72.3% in the first quarter, selling 932,735 shares and leaving it with 357,265 shares valued at about $14.5 million.
• Several other institutional investors adjusted positions in LINC, and institutional ownership remains high at 72.23% of the company’s stock.
• Analysts remain mostly bullish: the stock carries a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with five Buy ratings and an average price target of $54.17, while the company also beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates in its latest report.

Heartland Advisors Inc. reduced its stake in Lincoln Educational Services Corporation (NASDAQ:LINC - Free Report) by 72.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 357,265 shares of the company's stock after selling 932,735 shares during the quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. owned about 1.13% of Lincoln Educational Services worth $14,534,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Granite Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Lincoln Educational Services during the 1st quarter worth about $248,000. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its holdings in Lincoln Educational Services by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 126,527 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,147,000 after purchasing an additional 9,081 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln Educational Services during the 1st quarter worth about $2,935,000. North Star Investment Management Corp. boosted its position in Lincoln Educational Services by 17.4% during the first quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 168,275 shares of the company's stock worth $6,845,000 after acquiring an additional 25,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diversified Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln Educational Services during the first quarter worth $344,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.23% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LINC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barrington Research raised their target price on shares of Lincoln Educational Services from $45.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Lake Street Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $55.00 price objective on shares of Lincoln Educational Services in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Lincoln Educational Services in a research note on Thursday, June 11th. Weiss Ratings cut Lincoln Educational Services from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Northland Securities set a $60.00 target price on shares of Lincoln Educational Services in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $54.17.

Lincoln Educational Services Stock Down 2.5%

Shares of NASDAQ LINC opened at $42.95 on Friday. Lincoln Educational Services Corporation has a 12-month low of $17.29 and a 12-month high of $56.34. The company has a market cap of $1.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 60.49, a P/E/G ratio of 3.66 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $49.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.19.

Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 11th. The company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.04 by $0.10. Lincoln Educational Services had a return on equity of 15.25% and a net margin of 4.11%.The company had revenue of $143.96 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $135.66 million. Lincoln Educational Services has set its FY 2026 guidance at 0.740-0.830 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Lincoln Educational Services Corporation will post 0.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lincoln Educational Services news, CFO Brian K. Meyers sold 40,070 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.98, for a total value of $2,002,698.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 160,712 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,032,385.76. This trade represents a 19.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Kevin M. Carney sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.00, for a total transaction of $144,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 25,039 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,201,872. This trade represents a 10.70% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 95,070 shares of company stock valued at $4,617,457. Corporate insiders own 12.80% of the company's stock.

About Lincoln Educational Services

Lincoln Educational Services Corporation is a publicly traded provider of career-focused post-secondary vocational education in the United States. Operating under the Lincoln Tech and Lincoln Culinary Institute brands, the company delivers hands-on technical instruction across high-growth industries. Its mission centers on equipping students with practical skills and industry credentials designed to meet employer needs.

The company's program offerings span automotive technology, skilled trades, health sciences, information technology, culinary arts and public safety.

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