Lincoln Educational Services Corporation (NASDAQ:LINC) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Buy" from Analysts

Lincoln Educational Services Corporation (NASDAQ:LINC - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus recommendation of "Buy" by the six ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $24.60.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on LINC. B. Riley reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Lincoln Educational Services in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Barrington Research lifted their price target on Lincoln Educational Services from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Northland Capmk upgraded Lincoln Educational Services to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Northland Securities started coverage on Lincoln Educational Services in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $24.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price objective on Lincoln Educational Services from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln Educational Services

In other Lincoln Educational Services news, COO Chad D. Nyce sold 6,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.93, for a total transaction of $142,166.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 170,209 shares in the company, valued at $3,902,892.37. This trade represents a 3.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director James J. Burke, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.42, for a total value of $107,100.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 82,230 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,761,366.60. This trade represents a 5.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 51,200 shares of company stock worth $1,172,166. 13.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lincoln Educational Services

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Lincoln Educational Services by 5.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,494,714 shares of the company's stock valued at $23,721,000 after purchasing an additional 75,989 shares during the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its position in shares of Lincoln Educational Services by 43.1% during the 4th quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,123,143 shares of the company's stock worth $17,768,000 after purchasing an additional 338,495 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Lincoln Educational Services by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,071,560 shares of the company's stock worth $16,952,000 after purchasing an additional 51,430 shares during the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Lincoln Educational Services by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 833,093 shares of the company's stock worth $13,180,000 after purchasing an additional 41,442 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Next Century Growth Investors LLC lifted its position in shares of Lincoln Educational Services by 11.3% during the 1st quarter. Next Century Growth Investors LLC now owns 738,923 shares of the company's stock worth $11,727,000 after purchasing an additional 74,775 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.23% of the company's stock.

Lincoln Educational Services Price Performance

Shares of LINC stock traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $22.65. 181,489 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 182,637. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $22.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $18.32. The firm has a market cap of $715.51 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.04. Lincoln Educational Services has a twelve month low of $11.22 and a twelve month high of $24.20.

Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.04 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $117.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $114.55 million. Lincoln Educational Services had a return on equity of 10.88% and a net margin of 2.65%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Lincoln Educational Services will post 0.54 earnings per share for the current year.

About Lincoln Educational Services

Lincoln Educational Services Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides various career-oriented post-secondary education services to high school graduates and working adults in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Campus Operations and Transitional. It offers associate's degree, and diploma and certificate programs in automotive technology; skilled trades programs, including electrical, heating and air conditioning repair, welding, computerized numerical control, and electrical and electronic systems technology; health science programs comprising licensed practical nurse, registered nurse, dental assistant, medical assistant, medical administrative assistant, and claims examiner; hospitality service and information technology programs, such as culinary, therapeutic massage, cosmetology, aesthetics, and computer systems support technicians.