Lincoln Educational Services
LINC on Nasdaq. Lincoln Educational Services sells career training to high school graduates and working adults. Market value $704m.
Price checks use the past 12 months to June 2026. Quality checks use five annual reports, the latest for the year to December 2025.
We can't read total debt from the filing, so debt is left out.
Should I look at this?
Not a fit for our list right now
Why it could be worth it
See Retail & consumer stocks that passed both tests
This is not advice. Check the numbers below.
For every $100 of what the whole company costs, it produced $3.40 of spare cash in the past 12 months. A savings account pays about $4.
You pay 21.8 years of operating profit for the business. The average large US company costs around 18.
The filings do not give us enough to work this out.
Quality score: 51 of 100. Price score: 51 of 100. Our list needs 70 on quality and 60 on price.
$22.74 a share, 32% above its 1-year low
Over the past year the price has ranged from $17.29 to $56.34.
Pays no dividend
Prices from Tuesday’s close (6 October).
Five years of cash, in billions
Spare cash swings from quarter to quarter here: $25 million in the past 12 months, a shortfall of $27 million in the year to December 2025.
| Revenue | |||||
| Revenue | $335m | $348m | $378m | $440m | $518m |
| Operating margin | |||||
| Operating margin | 14.7% | 4.7% | 8.8% | 3.4% | 5.8% |
| Debt to equity | |||||
| Debt to equity | 0.00 | n/a | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| Shares outstanding | |||||
| Shares outstanding | 0.03bn | 0.03bn | 0.03bn | 0.03bn | 0.03bn |
Health checks
- Free cash flow positive1 of 5 years
- Accounting looks honest (Beneish)Not enough data
- Financial strength (Piotroski)6 of 8 checks we could run
- Profit backed by cash (accruals)Yes
- DebtUnknown
- Revenue growth, five yearsStrong, 12.1% a year
- Buying back its own sharesNo, 21% more shares since 2021
The quarter to June 2026
How the business did, compared with the same quarter a year earlier.
- Sales: $143 million last quarter, up 22% on a year ago.
- Profit: $2 million, about the same as a year ago.
- It keeps 6 cents of each $1 of sales as operating profit, up from 5 cents a year earlier.
- Spare cash over the past 12 months: $25 million. A year earlier it spent $63 million more than it brought in.
- About the same number of shares as a year ago.
- Debt is $13 million more than cash, down from $28 million a year ago.
- Sales grew on a year ago in each of the last 4 quarters.
| Quarter to | Amount |
|---|---|
| September 2024 | $114m |
| December 2024 | $119m |
| March 2025 | $118m |
| June 2025 | $116m |
| September 2025 | $141m |
| December 2025 | $143m |
| March 2026 | $144m |
| June 2026 | $143m |
| Quarter to | Amount |
|---|---|
| September 2024 | $4m |
| December 2024 | $7m |
| March 2025 | $2m |
| June 2025 | $2m |
| September 2025 | $4m |
| December 2025 | $13m |
| March 2026 | $4m |
| June 2026 | $2m |
From the company's quarterly reports to the SEC.
Dates
- Next results (estimated)
- n/a
- Last annual report (10-K)
- 2 March 2026
- Next quarterly (estimated, 10-Q)
- 9 November 2026
Who owns it
5 long-term investors we follow own it, up from 4 last quarter. 221 funds in all.
| Fund | Value | Share of that fund | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Eagle Investment ManagementMatthew McLennan | $61m | <0.1% | Added |
| Royce & AssociatesChuck Royce | $22m | 0.2% | Added |
| Auxier Asset ManagementJeff Auxier | $10m | 1.4% | Cut |
| Heartland AdvisorsBill Nasgovitz | $5m | 0.2% | Cut |
| Cannell CapitalJ. Carlo Cannell | $202,394 | 0.1% | New |
Largest holders overall
- BlackRock$124mAdded
- Juniper Investment Company$86mCut
- Needham Investment Management$66mAdded
- Alliancebernstein L.P.$64mAdded
- First Eagle Investment Management$61mAdded
- Vanguard Capital Management$61m
- Next Century Growth Investors$59mAdded
- Driehaus Capital Management$47mAdded
- Geode Capital Management$44mAdded
- American Century Companies$41m
From 13F filings for the quarter ended 30 June 2026.
Big holders and activists
4 investors own more than 5%.
- BlackRock, Inc.Passive investor7.5%+1.0 ptsSince 30 June 2026
- Juniper Targeted Opportunity Fund, L.P.Insider or founder7.5%Since 28 February 2025
What they said
Item 4 is hereby amended and supplemented by adding the following information. Between December 3, 2024, and March 3, 2025, Juniper Targeted Opportunities, L.P. sold 450,878 shares at an aggregate sale price of approximately $7,839,305, which excludes brokerage commissions, in…
Read the filing - Alexis P. MichasInsider or founderat least 6.1%−1.2 pts(filed with 6 related holders)Since 11 June 2026
What they said
Item 4 is hereby amended and supplemented by adding the following information.Between February 27, 2026, and June 12, 2026, Juniper Targeted Opportunity Fund, L.P. sold 355,345 shares at an aggregate sale price of approximately $15,580,130, which includes brokerage commissions,…
Read the filing - Alyeska Investment Group, L.P.Passive investorat least 2.4%−2.7 pts(filed with 2 related holders)Since 31 March 2026
- The Vanguard GroupPassive investorSold down below 5%Since 13 March 2026
| Holder | Stake | Since | |
|---|---|---|---|
BlackRock, Inc. Passive investor | 7.5%+1.0 pts | 30 June 2026 | |
Juniper Targeted Opportunity Fund, L.P. Insider or founder | 7.5% | 28 February 2025 | What they saidItem 4 is hereby amended and supplemented by adding the following information. Between December 3, 2024, and March 3, 2025, Juniper Targeted Opportunities, L.P. sold 450,878 shares at an aggregate sale price of approximately $7,839,305, which excludes brokerage commissions, in… Read the filing |
Alexis P. Michas Insider or founder | at least 6.1%−1.2 pts (filed with 6 related holders) | 11 June 2026 | What they saidItem 4 is hereby amended and supplemented by adding the following information.Between February 27, 2026, and June 12, 2026, Juniper Targeted Opportunity Fund, L.P. sold 355,345 shares at an aggregate sale price of approximately $15,580,130, which includes brokerage commissions,… Read the filing |
Alyeska Investment Group, L.P. Passive investor | at least 2.4%−2.7 pts (filed with 2 related holders) | 31 March 2026 | |
The Vanguard Group Passive investor | Sold down below 5% | 13 March 2026 |
From Schedule 13D and 13G filings: anyone owning more than 5% must file one.
What insiders did
No insider bought shares on the open market in the last 12 months. 8 sold $7m.
- LUSTER ALEXANDRA MSVP and General CounselSold
- Date
- 15 June 2026
- Shares
- 18,007
- Price
- $44.64
- Value
- $803,832
- Carney Kevin MDirectorSold
- Date
- 10 June 2026
- Shares
- 3,000
- Price
- $48.00
- Value
- $144,000
- LUSTER ALEXANDRA MSVP and General CounselSold
- Date
- 5 June 2026
- Shares
- 1,993
- Price
- $50.11
- Value
- $99,869
- Pryor Felecia J.DirectorSold
- Date
- 3 June 2026
- Shares
- 2,000
- Price
- $49.70
- Value
- $99,400
- BURKE JAMES J JRDirectorSold
- Date
- 22 May 2026
- Shares
- 15,807
- Price
- $48.36
- Value
- $764,427
- BURKE JAMES J JRDirectorSold
- Date
- 18 May 2026
- Shares
- 16,000
- Price
- $49.54
- Value
- $792,640
- BURKE JAMES J JRDirectorSold
- Date
- 14 May 2026
- Shares
- 193
- Price
- $51.76
- Value
- $9,990
- Meyers Brian KCFO and TreasurerSold
- Date
- 12 May 2026
- Shares
- 40,070
- Price
- $49.98
- Value
- $2m
- Nyce Chad DEVP & Chief Operating OfficerSold
- Date
- 10 March 2026
- Shares
- 8,450
- Price
- $36.50
- Value
- $308,425
- Young Sylvia JeanDirectorSold
- Date
- 6 March 2026
- Shares
- 7,959
- Price
- $35.81
- Value
- $285,012
| Date | Who | Did | Shares | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 June 2026 | LUSTER ALEXANDRA M SVP and General Counsel | Sold | 18,007 | $44.64 | $803,832 |
| 10 June 2026 | Carney Kevin M Director | Sold | 3,000 | $48.00 | $144,000 |
| 5 June 2026 | LUSTER ALEXANDRA M SVP and General Counsel | Sold | 1,993 | $50.11 | $99,869 |
| 3 June 2026 | Pryor Felecia J. Director | Sold | 2,000 | $49.70 | $99,400 |
| 22 May 2026 | BURKE JAMES J JR Director | Sold | 15,807 | $48.36 | $764,427 |
| 18 May 2026 | BURKE JAMES J JR Director | Sold | 16,000 | $49.54 | $792,640 |
| 14 May 2026 | BURKE JAMES J JR Director | Sold | 193 | $51.76 | $9,990 |
| 12 May 2026 | Meyers Brian K CFO and Treasurer | Sold | 40,070 | $49.98 | $2m |
| 10 March 2026 | Nyce Chad D EVP & Chief Operating Officer | Sold | 8,450 | $36.50 | $308,425 |
| 6 March 2026 | Young Sylvia Jean Director | Sold | 7,959 | $35.81 | $285,012 |
From Form 4 filings: insiders must report trades in their own company's shares within two days.
Warning signs in its filings
Problems the company itself reported to the SEC, in its own words.
None of the warning signs we check for were found.
We look for five warning signs: doubt it can keep going, weak checks on its own accounts, a notice that its past accounts can't be relied on, a change of auditor, and one customer bringing in a big share of sales. We don't check lawsuits, investigations or debt yet.
We checked the auditor's report, internal controls, restatement notices, auditor changes and big customers in the 10-K filed 2 Mar 2026, plus the 10-Q filed 10 Aug 2026 and 7 later 8-Ks.
A 10-K is the yearly report every US company files with the SEC. An 8-K is a short notice of a big event.
What could go wrong
Cheap for a reason is the question the numbers cannot answer.
Whether the price already reflects the risks is what the deep dive is for.
The deep dive
Everything above is arithmetic on public filings. The deep dive reads the last ten years of annual reports, the proxy statements, and the earnings calls, then argues the case the way Buffett, Klarman, and Hohn would, and checks every claim against the source.
- What the business is worth, as a range, and the margin of safety at today’s price
- Prices to start buying, buy, and buy hard
- The three things that would make this a mistake
- Every number footnoted to the filing it came from
Your first deep dive is free.
Not advice. Numbers on this page come from SEC filings and are updated each night; prices are updated again after the US market closes. The five-year figures are rounded.