Based on the aggregated intelligence of 170,000-plus investors participating in Motley Fool CAPS, the Fool's free investing community, for-profit educator Lincoln Educational Services
With that in mind, let's take a closer look at Lincoln's business and see what CAPS investors are saying about the stock right now.
Lincoln facts
| Headquarters (Founded) | West Orange, N.J. (1946) |
| Market Cap | $342.1 million |
| Industry | Education services |
| Trailing-12-Month Revenue | $632.4 million |
| Management |
CEO Shaun McAlmont (since 2009) CFO Cesar Ribeiro (since 2004) |
| Return on Equity (Average, Past 3 Years) | 23% |
| Cash/Debt | $43.7 million / $36.9 million |
| Dividend Yield | 6.6% |
| Competitors |
Apollo Group
DeVry
Strayer Education |
Sources: Capital IQ (a division of Standard & Poor's) and Motley Fool CAPS.
On CAPS, 96% of the 191 members who have rated Lincoln believe the stock will outperform the S&P 500 going forward. These bulls include All-Star ServusDei7, who is ranked in the top 2% of our community, and ichangedmyuserid.
Just last month, ServusDei7 listed several of Lincoln's positives: "Single digit P/E, consistent earnings for at least the past 10 years with good growth, high ROE, healthy balance sheet, and good yield. Clearly a winner."
In fact, Lincoln currently sports a particularly paltry P/E of 5.6. That represents a clear discount to competitors like Apollo (16.1), DeVry (12.3), and Strayer (12.5).
CAPS member ichangedmyuserid elaborates on the bull case for Lincoln:
Is it wrong that I like education stocks so much? The industry is great and is pretty recession proof. Lincoln has the highest dividend in the industry at a hefty 6% (even if it gets cut in half, still very reasonable) and a top 10 return on equity and earnings growth. Brand recognition is good, which is important in a competitive industry like this.
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