Insider Selling: Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC) Director Sells $307,547.88 in Stock

Lincoln Educational Services Corporation (NASDAQ:LINC) Director Kevin Carney sold 13,866 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.18, for a total transaction of $307,547.88. Following the sale, the director owned 24,823 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $550,574.14. The trade was a 35.84% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Lincoln Educational Services Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LINC traded down $0.41 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $22.28. The stock had a trading volume of 175,011 shares, compared to its average volume of 253,774. The stock has a market cap of $704.49 million, a P/E ratio of 49.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.00. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $21.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 0.81. Lincoln Educational Services Corporation has a 12-month low of $14.10 and a 12-month high of $25.76.

Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.12 by $0.08. Lincoln Educational Services had a return on equity of 12.20% and a net margin of 2.86%.The company had revenue of $141.39 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $129.85 million. On average, research analysts forecast that Lincoln Educational Services Corporation will post 0.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lincoln Educational Services

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. McIlrath & Eck LLC increased its stake in Lincoln Educational Services by 24.2% in the 3rd quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 2,815 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 548 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln Educational Services by 3.7% during the second quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 16,235 shares of the company’s stock worth $374,000 after purchasing an additional 578 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Lincoln Educational Services by 1.9% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 47,648 shares of the company’s stock worth $756,000 after purchasing an additional 879 shares during the last quarter. Informed Momentum Co LLC increased its position in shares of Lincoln Educational Services by 1.9% in the first quarter. Informed Momentum Co LLC now owns 48,920 shares of the company’s stock worth $776,000 after purchasing an additional 915 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Lincoln Educational Services by 4.9% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 19,873 shares of the company’s stock valued at $467,000 after purchasing an additional 937 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.23% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on LINC shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Lincoln Educational Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 29th. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $27.00 price objective on shares of Lincoln Educational Services in a research note on Monday. Zacks Research upgraded Lincoln Educational Services to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Lincoln Educational Services in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price target on Lincoln Educational Services from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $25.40.

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.