Brokerages Set Lincoln Educational Services Corporation (NASDAQ:LINC) Target Price at $24.60

Shares of Lincoln Educational Services Corporation (NASDAQ:LINC) have been given an average rating of “Buy” by the six ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat 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 updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $24.60.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on LINC shares. Rosenblatt Securities raised 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. Northland Securities assumed coverage on Lincoln Educational Services in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $24.00 price target on the stock. Northland Capmk raised shares of Lincoln Educational Services to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. B. Riley reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Lincoln Educational Services in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Barrington Research raised their target price on shares of Lincoln Educational Services from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th.

Lincoln Educational Services Price Performance

Shares of LINC opened at $22.53 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $20.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.60. Lincoln Educational Services has a 1-year low of $10.31 and a 1-year high of $24.20. The company has a market cap of $711.72 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.77, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.62.

Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The company reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.04 by $0.07. Lincoln Educational Services had a net margin of 2.65% and a return on equity of 10.88%. The company had revenue of $117.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $114.55 million. On average, research analysts forecast that Lincoln Educational Services will post 0.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Lincoln Educational Services

In other news, Director James J. Burke, Jr. sold 5,000 shares of Lincoln Educational Services stock in a transaction on Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.42, for a total transaction of $107,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 82,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,761,366.60. This trade represents a 5.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Carlton Rose sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.63, for a total transaction of $708,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 15,295 shares in the company, valued at $361,420.85. This trade represents a 66.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 51,200 shares of company stock worth $1,172,166 in the last ninety days. 13.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

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

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.