Lincoln Educational Services Corporation (LINC) Key Metrics
LINC valuation today
Trailing 12 months · as of October 18, 2026- Market cap
- $704.9M
- Enterprise value
- $952.5M
- P/E (TTM)
- 30.4 10-yr median 11.9
- Forward P/E
- 26.0
- PEG ratio
- 1.74
- Price / sales
- 1.2 10-yr median 0.5
- Price / book
- 3.8 10-yr median 1.4
- EV / EBITDA
- 16.2 10-yr median 18.5
- Dividend yield
- —
- Beta
- 0.83
LINC key metrics, 2016–2025
Fiscal year ended December 31, 2025 · U.S. dollarsLINC valuation Price multiples at each fiscal year-end price.
LINC returns How much profit the business earns on the capital it uses.
LINC per-share figures Results divided by the shares outstanding at year-end.
LINC financial health Debt, liquidity and how easily interest is covered.
LINC efficiency & capital use Working capital cycle and where the cash goes.
LINC valuation history
LINC returns on capital
Net income (ROE, ROA) or after-tax operating income (ROIC) divided by the average of the opening and closing balance.
LINC debt vs cash
Debt includes short- and long-term borrowings and, where reported, lease liabilities.
LINC cash returned to shareholders
LINC price vs earnings per share
LINC key metrics
2016–2025| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valuation | ||||||||||
| Market capitalization | $754.9M | $488.7M | $306.6M | $149.8M | $187.4M | $160.9M | $66.3M | $78.2M | $48.3M | $45.0M |
| Enterprise value | $930.3M | $607.0M | $347.4M | $189.6M | $201.9M | $201.3M | $131.8M | $109.4M | $98.1M | $65.9M |
| P/E ratio | 37.8 | 49.4 | 11.8 | 11.9 | 5.4 | 3.3 | 32.9 | — | — | — |
| Price / sales | 1.5 | 1.1 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
| Price / book | 3.8 | 2.7 | 1.8 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 1.2 | 2.0 | 1.1 | 0.6 |
| Price / free cash flow | — | — | — | — | 9.4 | 9.0 | — | — | — | — |
| Price / operating cash flow | 12.8 | 16.7 | 12.0 | 169.9 | 6.8 | 6.8 | 67.1 | — | — | — |
| EV / sales | 1.8 | 1.4 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.7 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.3 |
| EV / EBITDA | 18.5 | 21.2 | 8.2 | 8.3 | 28.0 | 9.1 | 9.9 | 24.3 | 24.3 | — |
| EV / free cash flow | — | — | — | — | 10.1 | 11.2 | — | — | — | — |
| Earnings yield | 2.6% | 2.0% | 8.5% | 8.4% | 18.5% | 30.2% | 3.0% | −8.4% | −23.8% | −62.9% |
| Free cash flow yield | −3.6% | −5.6% | −4.9% | −5.4% | 10.6% | 11.1% | −6.6% | −8.2% | −33.3% | −21.5% |
| Dividend yield | — | 0.0% | 0.1% | 0.7% | 0.7% | 0.9% | 2.1% | 1.8% | 2.9% | 0.0% |
| Shareholder yield (dividends + buybacks) | — | 0.0% | 0.4% | 7.0% | 1.2% | 1.0% | 2.1% | 2.2% | 3.8% | 0.4% |
| Share price at fiscal year-end | $24.15 | $15.82 | $10.04 | $5.79 | $7.47 | $6.50 | $2.70 | $3.20 | $2.02 | $1.92 |
| Per share | ||||||||||
| Revenue per share | $16.58 | $14.25 | $12.38 | $13.46 | $13.37 | $11.84 | $11.13 | $10.78 | $10.95 | $8.40 |
| Earnings per share | $0.64 | $0.32 | $0.85 | $0.49 | $1.38 | $1.96 | $0.08 | −$0.27 | −$0.48 | −$1.21 |
| Operating cash flow per share | $1.89 | $0.95 | $0.84 | $0.03 | $1.09 | $0.95 | $0.04 | −$0.07 | −$0.47 | −$0.26 |
| Free cash flow per share | −$0.88 | −$0.89 | −$0.50 | −$0.31 | $0.79 | $0.72 | −$0.18 | −$0.26 | −$0.67 | −$0.41 |
| Cash per share | $0.91 | $1.92 | $2.49 | $2.35 | $3.32 | $1.54 | $0.96 | $0.72 | $0.61 | $0.90 |
| Book value per share | $6.39 | $5.77 | $5.46 | $5.60 | $5.64 | $4.16 | $2.25 | $1.63 | $1.92 | $3.09 |
| Tangible book value per share | $6.04 | $5.42 | $5.11 | $5.04 | $5.06 | $3.58 | $1.65 | $1.04 | $1.31 | $2.47 |
| Dividends per share | — | $0.00 | $0.01 | $0.04 | $0.05 | $0.06 | $0.06 | $0.06 | $0.06 | $0.00 |
| Capex per share | $2.77 | $1.84 | $1.33 | $0.35 | $0.30 | $0.23 | $0.22 | $0.19 | $0.20 | $0.15 |
| Debt per share | $6.52 | $5.75 | $3.82 | $3.89 | $3.90 | $3.17 | $3.63 | $2.00 | $2.69 | $1.79 |
| Shares outstanding | 31.3M | 30.9M | 30.5M | 25.9M | 25.1M | 24.7M | 24.6M | 24.4M | 23.9M | 23.5M |
| Change in shares outstanding | +1.2% | +1.1% | +18.0% | +3.2% | +1.3% | +0.8% | +0.5% | +2.2% | +1.9% | +1.2% |
| Returns & profitability | ||||||||||
| Return on equity (ROE) | 10.6% | 5.7% | 16.7% | 8.8% | 28.4% | 61.4% | 4.2% | −15.3% | −19.4% | −36.9% |
| Return on invested capital (ROIC) | 6.8% | 4.0% | 12.4% | 7.3% | 24.2% | 6.5% | 4.8% | −3.7% | −3.9% | −4.2% |
| Return on assets (ROA) | 4.3% | 2.5% | 8.2% | 4.3% | 12.8% | 22.1% | 1.2% | −4.3% | −7.2% | −15.2% |
| Return on tangible assets | 4.1% | 2.3% | 7.8% | 4.6% | 12.4% | 21.1% | 1.1% | −5.0% | −8.2% | −19.0% |
| Free cash flow margin | −5.3% | −6.3% | −4.0% | −2.3% | 5.9% | 6.1% | −1.6% | −2.4% | −6.1% | −4.9% |
| Income quality (OCF / net income) | 2.96 | 2.96 | 0.98 | 0.07 | 0.79 | 0.48 | 0.49 | — | — | — |
| Financial health | ||||||||||
| Total debt | $203.9M | $177.6M | $116.8M | $100.6M | $97.9M | $78.4M | $89.2M | $48.8M | $64.4M | $42.0M |
| Cash & short-term investments | $28.5M | $59.3M | $76.0M | $60.8M | $83.3M | $38.0M | $23.6M | $17.6M | $14.6M | $21.1M |
| Net debt | $175.3M | $118.3M | $40.8M | $39.8M | $14.6M | $40.4M | $65.5M | $31.2M | $49.8M | $20.9M |
| Debt / equity | 1.02 | 1.00 | 0.70 | 0.69 | 0.69 | 0.76 | 1.62 | 1.22 | 1.40 | 0.58 |
| Debt / assets | 0.41 | 0.41 | 0.34 | 0.35 | 0.33 | 0.32 | 0.46 | 0.33 | 0.41 | 0.26 |
| Net debt / EBITDA | 3.48 | 4.13 | 0.96 | 1.73 | 2.02 | 1.83 | 4.91 | 6.94 | 12.32 | — |
| Current ratio | 0.86 | 1.23 | 1.83 | 2.07 | 1.85 | 1.11 | 0.88 | 0.88 | 0.93 | 0.97 |
| Quick ratio | 0.82 | 1.20 | 1.79 | 2.03 | 1.80 | 1.07 | 0.85 | 0.86 | 0.90 | 0.95 |
| Interest coverage | 8.8 | 5.9 | 96.1 | 101.7 | 24.4 | 11.6 | 1.8 | -1.6 | -0.7 | -0.8 |
| Working capital | −$13.7M | $21.0M | $61.3M | $59.1M | $55.7M | $7.3M | −$6.7M | −$7.5M | −$3.3M | −$2.0M |
| Invested capital | $375.0M | $296.6M | $207.6M | $184.7M | $156.0M | $143.4M | $120.7M | $71.1M | $95.6M | $93.3M |
| Tangible asset value | $188.9M | $167.5M | $156.1M | $130.3M | $126.9M | $88.5M | $40.6M | $25.3M | $31.3M | $57.8M |
| Net current asset value | −$206.4M | −$147.0M | −$43.8M | −$32.6M | −$32.3M | −$68.0M | −$89.2M | −$49.1M | −$65.2M | −$24.5M |
| Graham number | $9.59 | $6.45 | $10.23 | $7.84 | $13.25 | $13.56 | $2.04 | — | — | — |
| Graham net-net per share | −$7.02 | −$5.35 | −$2.43 | −$2.19 | −$1.98 | −$3.25 | −$4.06 | −$3.02 | −$3.44 | −$2.46 |
| Capital allocation | ||||||||||
| Dividends paid | — | $0 | $199,000 | $1.1M | $1.2M | $1.4M | $1.4M | $1.4M | $1.4M | $0 |
| Share buybacks (net) | — | $0 | $891,000 | $9.4M | $962,000 | $245,000 | $0 | $372,000 | $440,000 | $178,000 |
| Dividend payout ratio | — | 0.0% | 0.8% | 8.8% | 3.5% | 2.8% | 68.4% | — | — | — |
| Dividends + buybacks / free cash flow | — | — | — | — | 11.0% | 9.1% | — | — | — | — |
| Capex / revenue | 16.7% | 12.9% | 10.8% | 2.6% | 2.2% | 1.9% | 2.0% | 1.8% | 1.8% | 1.8% |
| Capex / operating cash flow | 146.4% | 194.0% | 159.2% | 1,018.8% | 27.4% | 23.8% | 545.0% | — | — | — |
| Capex / depreciation | 4.16 | 5.02 | 6.17 | 1.41 | 1.05 | 0.75 | 0.66 | 0.56 | 0.55 | 0.32 |
| Stock-based compensation / revenue | 1.1% | 1.1% | 1.6% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 0.6% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.5% | 0.7% |
| SG&A / revenue | 54.6% | 55.4% | 45.2% | 52.4% | 40.5% | 53.3% | 53.1% | 53.7% | 53.0% | 52.4% |
| Efficiency | ||||||||||
| Days sales outstanding | 35.6 | 32.6 | 35.2 | 33.2 | 30.6 | 31.6 | 26.3 | 23.9 | 21.7 | 23.9 |
| Days of inventory on hand | 6.3 | 6.0 | 6.3 | 6.6 | 6.7 | 6.0 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 3.8 | 4.0 |
| Days payables outstanding | 56.9 | 55.4 | 32.2 | 28.0 | 36.7 | 45.2 | 42.4 | 35.8 | 34.2 | 51.2 |
| Cash conversion cycle (days) | -15.0 | -16.7 | 9.2 | 11.8 | 0.5 | -7.7 | -11.6 | -7.4 | -8.7 | -23.2 |
| Receivables turnover | 10.25 | 11.19 | 10.38 | 11.00 | 11.94 | 11.57 | 13.90 | 15.27 | 16.80 | 15.27 |
| Payables turnover | 6.41 | 6.59 | 11.33 | 13.05 | 9.93 | 8.08 | 8.61 | 10.19 | 10.67 | 7.13 |
| Inventory turnover | 58.36 | 60.58 | 58.31 | 55.72 | 54.32 | 61.07 | 80.74 | 80.68 | 95.33 | 90.36 |
| Asset turnover | 1.11 | 1.13 | 1.19 | 1.19 | 1.24 | 1.33 | 1.60 | 1.75 | 1.64 | 1.05 |
| Average receivables | $50.6M | $39.3M | $36.4M | $31.7M | $28.1M | $25.3M | $19.7M | $17.2M | $15.6M | $12.9M |
| Average payables | $32.0M | $27.6M | $14.3M | $11.4M | $14.0M | $15.1M | $14.3M | $12.3M | $12.1M | $13.3M |
| Average inventory | $3.5M | $3.0M | $2.8M | $2.7M | $2.6M | $2.0M | $1.5M | $1.6M | $1.4M | $1.1M |
| Intangibles / total assets | 2.2% | 2.5% | 3.1% | 5.0% | 4.9% | 5.9% | 7.5% | 10.0% | 9.4% | 8.9% |
Computed from LINC's annual financial statements (latest annual report filed March 2, 2026) and the closing share price on each fiscal year-end, adjusted for stock splits. Figures in U.S. dollars; data from EODHD. Averages use the opening and closing balance of each year.
LINC valuation and financial ratios
At the end of fiscal 2025 (December 31, 2025), Lincoln Educational Services traded at 37.8 times earnings, against a 10-year median of 11.9. Based on the latest twelve months, the trailing P/E is 30.4 and the forward P/E is 26.0. Lincoln Educational Services earned a return on equity of 10.6% and a return on invested capital of 6.8% in fiscal 2025. It ended the year with $203.9 million of debt and $28.5 million in cash and short-term investments, net debt of $175.3 million. The share count rose 33.3% from 23.5M to 31.3M over 9 years.
See the LINC income statement, the LINC chart for price history, or the LINC stock overview for the latest quote and news.
LINC key metrics FAQ
What is Lincoln Educational Services's P/E ratio?
Lincoln Educational Services's trailing P/E ratio is 30.4 based on the last twelve months of earnings (as of October 18, 2026), and its forward P/E is 26.0. At the end of fiscal 2025 it was 37.8, compared with a 10-year median of 11.9.
What is Lincoln Educational Services's EV/EBITDA?
Lincoln Educational Services's enterprise value was 18.5 times EBITDA at the end of fiscal 2025 (enterprise value $930.3 million, EBITDA $50.3 million); the current EV/EBITDA is 16.2.
What is Lincoln Educational Services's return on equity?
Lincoln Educational Services's return on equity (ROE) was 10.6% in fiscal 2025: net income of $20.0 million on average shareholders' equity of $189.0 million.
What is Lincoln Educational Services's ROIC?
Lincoln Educational Services's return on invested capital was 6.8% in fiscal 2025, using after-tax operating income divided by average debt plus equity minus cash.
How much debt does Lincoln Educational Services have?
Lincoln Educational Services had total debt of $203.9 million at the end of fiscal 2025, a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02 and $175.3 million of net debt (3.48 times EBITDA).
What is Lincoln Educational Services's free cash flow yield?
Lincoln Educational Services generated -$27.4 million of free cash flow in fiscal 2025, a free cash flow yield of −3.6% on its market value at year-end ($754.9 million).
What is Lincoln Educational Services's current ratio?
Lincoln Educational Services's current ratio was 0.86 at the end of fiscal 2025: current assets were 0.86 times current liabilities.