Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC) Shares Down 4.4% – Here’s What Happened

Lincoln Educational Services Co. (NASDAQ:LINC)’s stock price dropped 4.4% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $22.61 and last traded at $22.03. Approximately 7,820 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 95% from the average daily volume of 170,637 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.05.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LINC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Lake Street Capital raised their price objective on shares of Lincoln Educational Services from $21.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Rosenblatt Securities raised their price objective on Lincoln Educational Services from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Barrington Research lifted their target price on Lincoln Educational Services from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Northland Securities started coverage on shares of Lincoln Educational Services in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $24.00 price target for the company. Finally, B. Riley reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Lincoln Educational Services in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $24.60.

Lincoln Educational Services Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 1.53 and a current ratio of 1.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $692.14 million, a P/E ratio of 68.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 1.62. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $19.22 and a 200 day moving average of $17.25.

Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.04 by $0.07. Lincoln Educational Services had a net margin of 2.33% and a return on equity of 10.60%. The company had revenue of $117.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $114.55 million. Equities analysts predict that Lincoln Educational Services Co. will post 0.54 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Carlton Rose sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.63, for a total value of $708,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 15,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $361,420.85. This represents a 66.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director James J. Burke, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.42, for a total transaction of $107,100.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 82,230 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,761,366.60. The trade was a 5.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 45,000 shares of company stock worth $1,030,000 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 13.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lincoln Educational Services

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LINC. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Lincoln Educational Services by 5.4% in 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 period. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 338,495 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Lincoln Educational Services by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,071,560 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,952,000 after acquiring an additional 51,430 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Lincoln Educational Services by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 833,093 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,180,000 after purchasing an additional 41,442 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Next Century Growth Investors LLC increased its stake in shares of Lincoln Educational Services by 11.3% in the first 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 period. 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.