Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC) Shares Pass Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Lincoln Educational Services Corporation (NASDAQ:LINC - Get Free Report)'s stock price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Tuesday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $18.48 and traded as high as $22.94. Lincoln Educational Services shares last traded at $22.80, with a volume of 157,391 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on LINC. Lake Street Capital boosted their price objective on Lincoln Educational Services from $21.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Barrington Research increased 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 Securities started coverage on Lincoln Educational Services in a report on Thursday, April 24th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $24.00 price target on the stock. B. Riley restated a "buy" rating on shares of Lincoln Educational Services in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Northland Capmk upgraded Lincoln Educational Services to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lincoln Educational Services currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $24.60.

Lincoln Educational Services Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The company has a market cap of $730.20 million, a PE ratio of 59.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.58. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $22.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.56.

Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.04 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $117.51 million during 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%. Equities analysts expect that Lincoln Educational Services Corporation will post 0.54 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director James J. Burke, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was 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 $1,761,366.60. The trade was a 5.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Carlton Rose sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.63, for a total value of $708,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 15,295 shares in the company, valued at approximately $361,420.85. This represents a 66.23% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 51,200 shares of company stock valued at $1,172,166 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 13.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lincoln Educational Services

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LINC. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in Lincoln Educational Services during the 1st quarter valued at $8,344,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. increased its stake in Lincoln Educational Services by 43.1% during the fourth quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,123,143 shares of the company's stock worth $17,768,000 after acquiring an additional 338,495 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Lincoln Educational Services by 485.7% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 295,032 shares of the company's stock worth $4,667,000 after acquiring an additional 244,657 shares during the last quarter. Next Century Growth Investors LLC increased its stake in Lincoln Educational Services by 17.9% during the fourth quarter. Next Century Growth Investors LLC now owns 664,148 shares of the company's stock worth $10,507,000 after acquiring an additional 100,963 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new stake in Lincoln Educational Services during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,421,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.23% of the company's stock.

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.