Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC) Shares Gap Up After Analyst Upgrade

Lincoln Educational Services Co. (NASDAQ:LINC) gapped up before the market opened on Monday after Barrington Research raised their price target on the stock from $16.00 to $20.00. The stock had previously closed at $16.20, but opened at $18.00. Barrington Research currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Lincoln Educational Services shares last traded at $16.34, with a volume of 91,726 shares trading hands.

LINC has been the topic of a number of other research reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Lincoln Educational Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Rosenblatt Securities increased their price target on shares of Lincoln Educational Services from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, B. Riley increased their price objective on shares of Lincoln Educational Services from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lincoln Educational Services presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $18.00.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln Educational Services

In other Lincoln Educational Services news, major shareholder Juniper Investment Company, Ll sold 2,270 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.04, for a total value of $27,330.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 874,140 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,524,645.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 16.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gladius Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln Educational Services during the 2nd quarter worth about $33,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in Lincoln Educational Services by 60.2% during the first quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,218 shares of the company’s stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 4,217 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Lincoln Educational Services in the third quarter valued at approximately $121,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Educational Services during the second quarter worth approximately $123,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in shares of Lincoln Educational Services by 36.0% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 38,162 shares of the company’s stock worth $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 Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $12.71 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.23. The stock has a market cap of $532.01 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC) last posted its earnings results on Monday, November 11th. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.14 by ($0.01). Lincoln Educational Services had a net margin of 2.33% and a return on equity of 10.68%. The firm had revenue of $114.41 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $111.05 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.11 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Lincoln Educational Services Co. will post 0.51 earnings per share for the current 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.