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

Lincoln Educational Services Co. (NASDAQ:LINC) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading 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. The stock had previously closed at $14.91.

Several other research firms also recently commented on LINC. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $16.00 price objective on shares of Lincoln Educational Services in a report on Friday, September 20th. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price target on Lincoln Educational Services from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Lincoln Educational Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Lincoln Educational Services currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $17.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Juniper Investment Company, Ll sold 17,031 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 935,937 shares in the company, valued at $11,240,603.37. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders have sold a total of 40,819 shares of company stock worth $490,481 in the last ninety days. 16.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lincoln Educational Services

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Lincoln Educational Services during the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Lincoln Educational Services during the 3rd quarter valued at about $121,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new stake in Lincoln Educational Services during the 2nd quarter valued at about $123,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in Lincoln Educational Services by 60.2% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 4,217 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers grew its stake in Lincoln Educational Services by 36.0% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 38,162 shares of the company’s stock valued at $453,000 after purchasing an additional 10,095 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.23% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln Educational Services Trading Up 8.7 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a current ratio of 1.78. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $12.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $12.10. The firm has a market cap 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by $0.07. The business had revenue of $102.91 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $99.60 million. Lincoln Educational Services had a return on equity of 10.38% and a net margin of 1.95%. Analysts expect that Lincoln Educational Services Co. will post 0.51 EPS for the current fiscal 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.