Needham Investment Management LLC Acquires 250,000 Shares of Lincoln Educational Services Co. (NASDAQ:LINC)

Needham Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln Educational Services Co. (NASDAQ:LINC) by 71.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 600,000 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 250,000 shares during the quarter. Needham Investment Management LLC owned about 1.91% of Lincoln Educational Services worth $7,164,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LINC. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Lincoln Educational Services by 11.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,343,181 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,875,000 after purchasing an additional 136,334 shares during the period. Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Educational Services in the second quarter worth about $33,000. Secure Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Educational Services in the second quarter worth about $612,000. Calamos Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Educational Services in the second quarter worth about $576,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Educational Services by 19.5% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 97,580 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,157,000 after buying an additional 15,920 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. B. Riley raised their target price on shares of Lincoln Educational Services from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Barrington Research raised their target price on shares of Lincoln Educational Services from $16.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. 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, StockNews.com cut shares of Lincoln Educational Services from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $18.00.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln Educational Services

In other Lincoln Educational Services news, CFO Brian K. Meyers sold 6,892 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.38, for a total value of $112,890.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 266,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,359,258.54. The trade was a 2.52 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Juniper Investment Company, Ll sold 60,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.62, for a total value of $997,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 605,005 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,055,183.10. This represents a 9.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 145,886 shares of company stock valued at $2,385,424 in the last quarter. 16.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Lincoln Educational Services Trading Down 1.2 %

NASDAQ:LINC traded down $0.19 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $16.29. The company had a trading volume of 12,851 shares, compared to its average volume of 110,075. The company has a market capitalization of $512.81 million, a PE ratio of 51.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.47. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $13.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.65. Lincoln Educational Services Co. has a 52 week low of $8.78 and a 52 week high of $18.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.53.

Lincoln Educational Services (NASDAQ:LINC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 11th. The company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.14 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $114.41 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $111.05 million. Lincoln Educational Services had a net margin of 2.33% and a return on equity of 10.60%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.11 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Lincoln Educational Services Co. will post 0.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Educational Services 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.