Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC) Sets New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

Lincoln Educational Services Co. (NASDAQ:LINC) reached a new 52-week high on Friday after B. Riley raised their price target on the stock from $15.00 to $20.00. B. Riley currently has a buy rating on the stock. Lincoln Educational Services traded as high as $16.21 and last traded at $16.20, with a volume of 325686 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $14.91.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. StockNews.com lowered Lincoln Educational Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Rosenblatt Securities increased their price target on Lincoln Educational Services from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $16.00 price target on shares of Lincoln Educational Services in a research note on Friday, September 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $17.00.

Insider Activity at Lincoln Educational Services

In other Lincoln Educational Services news, major shareholder Juniper Investment Company, Ll sold 17,031 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.01, for a total transaction of $204,542.31. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 935,937 shares in the company, valued at $11,240,603.37. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Over the last three months, insiders sold 40,819 shares of company stock valued at $490,481. Insiders own 16.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lincoln Educational Services

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LINC. First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its position in Lincoln Educational Services by 25.4% during the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 768,851 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,119,000 after purchasing an additional 155,754 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Lincoln Educational Services by 11.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,343,181 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,875,000 after purchasing an additional 136,334 shares during the period. Herr Investment Group LLC raised its position in Lincoln Educational Services by 3.9% during the first quarter. Herr Investment Group LLC now owns 2,355,737 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,335,000 after purchasing an additional 88,335 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln Educational Services by 12.6% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 645,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,658,000 after buying an additional 72,400 shares during the period. Finally, Secure Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Educational Services in the second quarter worth approximately $612,000. 72.23% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lincoln Educational Services Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 1.78 and a quick ratio of 1.75. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $12.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $12.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $509.98 million, a PE ratio of 62.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.41.

Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by $0.07. Lincoln Educational Services had a return on equity of 10.38% and a net margin of 1.95%. The firm had revenue of $102.91 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.60 million. Research analysts expect that Lincoln Educational Services Co. will post 0.51 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln Educational Services Company Profile

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.