Demand for Transportation, Skilled Trade and Healthcare Professionals Projected to Continue in 2026

Lincoln Educational currently trades at $26.03 and has been a dream stock for shareholders. It’s returned 340% since January 2021, blowing past the S&P 500’s 83.4% gain. The company has also beaten the index over the past six months as its stock price is up 15.8% thanks to its solid quarterly results.

Why Do We Think Lincoln Educational Will Underperform?

Despite the momentum, we're sitting this one out for now. Here are three reasons why LINC doesn't excite us and a stock we'd rather own.

1. Weak Growth in Enrolled Students Points to Soft Demand

Revenue growth can be broken down into changes in price and volume (for companies like Lincoln Educational, our preferred volume metric is enrolled students). While both are important, the latter is the most critical to analyze because prices have a ceiling.

Lincoln Educational’s enrolled students came in at 18,244 in the latest quarter, and over the last two years, averaged 10.8% year-on-year growth. This performance was underwhelming and suggests it might have to lower prices or invest in product improvements to accelerate growth, factors that can hinder near-term profitability.

2. Cash Burn Ignites Concerns

If you’ve followed StockStory for a while, you know we emphasize free cash flow. Why, you ask? We believe that in the end, cash is king, and you can’t use accounting profits to pay the bills.

While Lincoln Educational posted positive free cash flow this quarter, the broader story hasn’t been so clean. Over the last two years, Lincoln Educational’s demanding reinvestments to stay relevant have drained its resources, putting it in a pinch and limiting its ability to return capital to investors. Its free cash flow margin averaged negative 7.6%, meaning it lit $7.62 of cash on fire for every $100 in revenue.

3. New Investments Fail to Bear Fruit as ROIC Declines

ROIC, or return on invested capital, is a metric showing how much operating profit a company generates relative to the money it has raised (debt and equity).

We like to invest in businesses with high returns, but the trend in a company’s ROIC is what often surprises the market and moves the stock price. Over the last few years, Lincoln Educational’s ROIC has unfortunately decreased significantly. Paired with its already low returns, these declines suggest its profitable growth opportunities are few and far between.

Final Judgment

We cheer for all companies serving everyday consumers, but in the case of Lincoln Educational, we’ll be cheering from the sidelines. With its shares beating the market recently, the stock trades at 33.8× forward P/E (or $26.03 per share). At this valuation, there’s a lot of good news priced in - we think other companies feature superior fundamentals at the moment. We’d recommend looking at a safe-and-steady industrials business benefiting from an upgrade cycle.

Quarterly earnings results are a good time to check in on a company’s progress, especially compared to its peers in the same sector. Today we are looking at Universal Technical Institute and the best and worst performers in the education services industry.

A whole industry has emerged to address the problem of rising education costs, offering consumers alternatives to traditional education paths such as four-year colleges. These alternative paths, which may include online courses or flexible schedules, make education more accessible to those with work or child-rearing obligations. However, some have run into issues around the value of the degrees and certifications they provide and whether customers are getting a good deal. Those who don’t prove their value could struggle to retain students, or even worse, invite the heavy hand of regulation.

The 7 education services stocks we track reported a very strong Q3. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 2.8% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was in line.

Luckily, education services stocks have performed well with share prices up 10.1% on average since the latest earnings results.

Universal Technical Institute

Founded in 1965, Universal Technical Institute is a leading provider of technical training programs, specializing in automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle, and marine technicians.

Universal Technical Institute reported revenues of $222.4 million, up 13.3% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 1.3%. Overall, it was a strong quarter for the company with a beat of analysts’ EPS and adjusted operating income estimates.

"Fiscal 2025 was an exceptional year for Universal Technical Institute and a defining start to the second phase of our North Star strategy," said Jerome Grant, CEO of Universal Technical Institute, Inc.

Universal Technical Institute scored the highest full-year guidance raise of the whole group. Investor expectations, however, were likely higher than Wall Street’s published projections, leaving some wishing for even better results (analysts’ consensus estimates are those published by big banks and advisory firms, not the investors who make buy and sell decisions). The stock is down 3.6% since reporting and currently trades at $28.43.

Best Q3: Lincoln Educational

Established in 1946, Lincoln Educational is a provider of specialized technical training in the United States, offering career-oriented programs to provide practical skills required in the workforce.

Lincoln Educational reported revenues of $141.4 million, up 23.6% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 7.5%. The business had a stunning quarter with a beat of analysts’ EPS and EBITDA estimates.

Lincoln Educational scored the biggest analyst estimates beat and fastest revenue growth among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 50.1% since reporting. It currently trades at $26.71.

Weakest Q3: Grand Canyon Education

Founded in 1949, Grand Canyon Education is an educational services provider known for its operation at Grand Canyon University.

Grand Canyon Education reported revenues of $261.1 million, up 9.6% year on year, in line with analysts’ expectations. It was a slower quarter as it posted full-year EPS guidance missing analysts’ expectations significantly and a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates.

Grand Canyon Education delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates in the group. The stock is flat since the results and currently trades at $180.01.

Read our full analysis of Grand Canyon Education’s results here.

Bright Horizons

Founded in 1986, Bright Horizons is a global provider of child care, early education, and workforce support solutions.

Bright Horizons reported revenues of $802.8 million, up 11.6% year on year. This print topped analysts’ expectations by 2.9%. Overall, it was an exceptional quarter as it also produced an impressive beat of analysts’ organic revenue estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

The stock is up 5.1% since reporting and currently trades at $96.98.

Read our full, actionable report on Bright Horizons here, it’s free.

Strategic Education

Formed through the merger of Strayer Education and Capella Education in 2018, Strategic Education is a career-focused higher education provider.

Strategic Education reported revenues of $319.9 million, up 4.6% year on year. This number surpassed analysts’ expectations by 1.7%. It was a very strong quarter as it also put up a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

Strategic Education had the slowest revenue growth among its peers. The stock is up 13% since reporting and currently trades at $84.53.

Read our full, actionable report on Strategic Education here, it’s free.

What Happened?

A number of stocks jumped in the afternoon session after investors wagered geopolitical tension would be contained following the U.S. military's operation in Venezuela, with the Dow hitting a fresh record. 

Sentiment remained firmly "risk-on" for early 2026, with Wall Street prioritizing domestic economic strength over foreign turbulence. Analysts noted that while the event raises short-term supply questions, the market largely viewed the potential stabilization of Venezuela's vast oil reserves as a long-term economic positive.

The stock market overreacts to news, and big price drops can present good opportunities to buy high-quality stocks.

Among others, the following stocks were impacted:

• Travel and Vacation Providers company Sabre jumped 6.4%. Is now the time to buy Sabre? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
• Specialized Consumer Services company WeightWatchers jumped 4.5%. Is now the time to buy WeightWatchers? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
• Footwear company Genesco jumped 6.2%. Is now the time to buy Genesco? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
• Apparel and Accessories company VF Corp jumped 4.3%. Is now the time to buy VF Corp? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.
• Education Services company Lincoln Educational jumped 5.9%. Is now the time to buy Lincoln Educational? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Zooming In On Sabre (SABR)

Sabre’s shares are extremely volatile and have had 34 moves greater than 5% over the last year. In that context, today’s move indicates the market considers this news meaningful but not something that would fundamentally change its perception of the business.

The previous big move we wrote about was 28 days ago when the stock dropped 7.6% on the news that the company's recent downward revision of its full-year financial forecast continued to weigh on investor sentiment. 

This followed the company's third-quarter report from about a month prior, which presented mixed results. While revenue surpassed estimates, the adjusted loss per share missed expectations. More significantly, Sabre lowered its guidance for the full year 2025. The company revised its revenue projection from a low single-digit percentage increase to flat year-over-year. Additionally, the forecast for pro-forma free cash flow was substantially reduced to approximately $70 million from a previous range of $100-$140 million. These adjustments signaled a weaker financial performance than previously anticipated by the company.

Sabre is up 4.5% since the beginning of the year, but at $1.39 per share, it is still trading 69.2% below its 52-week high of $4.52 from February 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Sabre’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $115.93.

Let’s dig into the relative performance of Laureate Education and its peers as we unravel the now-completed Q3 education services earnings season.

A whole industry has emerged to address the problem of rising education costs, offering consumers alternatives to traditional education paths such as four-year colleges. These alternative paths, which may include online courses or flexible schedules, make education more accessible to those with work or child-rearing obligations. However, some have run into issues around the value of the degrees and certifications they provide and whether customers are getting a good deal. Those who don’t prove their value could struggle to retain students, or even worse, invite the heavy hand of regulation.

The 7 education services stocks we track reported a very strong Q3. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 2.8% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was in line.

In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady as they are up 1.4% on average since the latest earnings results.

Laureate Education

Founded in 1998 by Douglas L. Becker and based in Miami, Laureate Education is a global network of higher education institutions.

Laureate Education reported revenues of $400.2 million, up 8.6% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 3.7%. Overall, it was a very strong quarter for the company with full-year revenue guidance exceeding analysts’ expectations and a solid beat of analysts’ revenue estimates.

Eilif Serck-Hanssen, President and Chief Executive Officer, said “We are pleased to report another strong quarter, driven by favorable operating performance as well as a weaker U.S. dollar. We were especially encouraged by our continued ability to scale our fully online offerings in Peru through our industry-leading digital portfolio and to deliver continued growth in Mexico despite a softer macroeconomic environment. The results from the intake cycles, combined with favorable foreign currency trends, give us the confidence to increase our full-year outlook for 2025.”

Interestingly, the stock is up 15.3% since reporting and currently trades at $33.31.

Best Q3: Lincoln Educational

Established in 1946, Lincoln Educational is a provider of specialized technical training in the United States, offering career-oriented programs to provide practical skills required in the workforce.

Lincoln Educational reported revenues of $141.4 million, up 23.6% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 7.5%. The business had a stunning quarter with a beat of analysts’ EPS and EBITDA estimates.

Lincoln Educational pulled off the biggest analyst estimates beat and fastest revenue growth among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 31.1% since reporting. It currently trades at $23.34.

Weakest Q3: Grand Canyon Education

Founded in 1949, Grand Canyon Education is an educational services provider known for its operation at Grand Canyon University.

Grand Canyon Education reported revenues of $261.1 million, up 9.6% year on year, in line with analysts’ expectations. It was a slower quarter as it posted full-year EPS guidance missing analysts’ expectations and a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates.

Grand Canyon Education delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates in the group. As expected, the stock is down 7.2% since the results and currently trades at $165.39.

Read our full analysis of Grand Canyon Education’s results here.

Universal Technical Institute

Founded in 1965, Universal Technical Institute is a leading provider of technical training programs, specializing in automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle, and marine technicians.

Universal Technical Institute reported revenues of $222.4 million, up 13.3% year on year. This number beat analysts’ expectations by 1.3%. It was a strong quarter as it also put up a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

Universal Technical Institute delivered the highest full-year guidance raise among its peers. The stock is down 15.8% since reporting and currently trades at $24.84.

Read our full, actionable report on Universal Technical Institute here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Adtalem

Formerly known as DeVry Education Group, Adtalem Global Education is a global provider of workforce solutions and educational services.

Adtalem reported revenues of $462.3 million, up 10.8% year on year. This print surpassed analysts’ expectations by 2%. More broadly, it was a mixed quarter as it also recorded a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates but full-year revenue guidance meeting analysts’ expectations.

Adtalem had the weakest full-year guidance update among its peers. The stock is down 26.4% since reporting and currently trades at $104.44.

Read our full, actionable report on Adtalem here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Let’s dig into the relative performance of Grand Canyon Education and its peers as we unravel the now-completed Q3 education services earnings season.

A whole industry has emerged to address the problem of rising education costs, offering consumers alternatives to traditional education paths such as four-year colleges. These alternative paths, which may include online courses or flexible schedules, make education more accessible to those with work or child-rearing obligations. However, some have run into issues around the value of the degrees and certifications they provide and whether customers are getting a good deal. Those who don’t prove their value could struggle to retain students, or even worse, invite the heavy hand of regulation.

The 7 education services stocks we track reported a very strong Q3. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 2.8% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was in line.

In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady as they are up 4.2% on average since the latest earnings results.

Weakest Q3: Grand Canyon Education

Founded in 1949, Grand Canyon Education is an educational services provider known for its operation at Grand Canyon University.

Grand Canyon Education reported revenues of $261.1 million, up 9.6% year on year. This print was in line with analysts’ expectations, but overall, it was a slower quarter for the company with full-year EPS guidance missing analysts’ expectations significantly and a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates.

Grand Canyon Education delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates of the whole group. Unsurprisingly, the stock is down 5.7% since reporting and currently trades at $168.07.

Read our full report on Grand Canyon Education here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Best Q3: Lincoln Educational

Established in 1946, Lincoln Educational is a provider of specialized technical training in the United States, offering career-oriented programs to provide practical skills required in the workforce.

Lincoln Educational reported revenues of $141.4 million, up 23.6% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 7.5%. The business had a stunning quarter with a beat of analysts’ EPS and EBITDA estimates.

Lincoln Educational pulled off the biggest analyst estimates beat and fastest revenue growth among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 36.4% since reporting. It currently trades at $24.28.

Adtalem

Formerly known as DeVry Education Group, Adtalem Global Education is a global provider of workforce solutions and educational services.

Adtalem reported revenues of $462.3 million, up 10.8% year on year, exceeding analysts’ expectations by 2%. Still, it was a mixed quarter as it posted full-year revenue guidance meeting analysts’ expectations.

Adtalem delivered the weakest full-year guidance update in the group. As expected, the stock is down 27.5% since the results and currently trades at $102.77.

Read our full analysis of Adtalem’s results here.

Universal Technical Institute

Founded in 1965, Universal Technical Institute is a leading provider of technical training programs, specializing in automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle, and marine technicians.

Universal Technical Institute reported revenues of $222.4 million, up 13.3% year on year. This number surpassed analysts’ expectations by 1.3%. It was a strong quarter as it also produced a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

Universal Technical Institute scored the highest full-year guidance raise among its peers. The stock is down 8.5% since reporting and currently trades at $26.99.

Read our full, actionable report on Universal Technical Institute here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Bright Horizons

Founded in 1986, Bright Horizons is a global provider of child care, early education, and workforce support solutions.

Bright Horizons reported revenues of $802.8 million, up 11.6% year on year. This print topped analysts’ expectations by 2.9%. Overall, it was an exceptional quarter as it also recorded an impressive beat of analysts’ organic revenue estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

The stock is up 10.3% since reporting and currently trades at $101.81.

Read our full, actionable report on Bright Horizons here, it’s free for active Edge members.

As the craze of earnings season draws to a close, here’s a look back at some of the most exciting (and some less so) results from Q3. Today, we are looking at education services stocks, starting with Lincoln Educational .

A whole industry has emerged to address the problem of rising education costs, offering consumers alternatives to traditional education paths such as four-year colleges. These alternative paths, which may include online courses or flexible schedules, make education more accessible to those with work or child-rearing obligations. However, some have run into issues around the value of the degrees and certifications they provide and whether customers are getting a good deal. Those who don’t prove their value could struggle to retain students, or even worse, invite the heavy hand of regulation.

The 7 education services stocks we track reported a very strong Q3. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 2.8% while next quarter’s revenue guidance was in line.

In light of this news, share prices of the companies have held steady as they are up 3.1% on average since the latest earnings results.

Best Q3: Lincoln Educational

Established in 1946, Lincoln Educational is a provider of specialized technical training in the United States, offering career-oriented programs to provide practical skills required in the workforce.

Lincoln Educational reported revenues of $141.4 million, up 23.6% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 7.5%. Overall, it was a stunning quarter for the company with a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ EBITDA estimates.

“As the demand for high-value career-focused training continues to reach new heights across America, Lincoln’s proven expertise, innovative training platforms, and campus development strategies are creating sustained levels of growth,” said Scott Shaw, President and Chief Executive Officer.

Lincoln Educational achieved the biggest analyst estimates beat and fastest revenue growth of the whole group. Unsurprisingly, the stock is up 33.9% since reporting and currently trades at $23.84.

Bright Horizons

Founded in 1986, Bright Horizons is a global provider of child care, early education, and workforce support solutions.

Bright Horizons reported revenues of $802.8 million, up 11.6% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 2.9%. The business had an exceptional quarter with a solid beat of analysts’ organic revenue and adjusted operating income estimates.

The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 10.1% since reporting. It currently trades at $101.62.

Weakest Q3: Grand Canyon Education

Founded in 1949, Grand Canyon Education is an educational services provider known for its operation at Grand Canyon University.

Grand Canyon Education reported revenues of $261.1 million, up 9.6% year on year, in line with analysts’ expectations. It was a slower quarter as it posted full-year EPS guidance missing analysts’ expectations and a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates.

Grand Canyon Education delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates in the group. As expected, the stock is down 6.9% since the results and currently trades at $165.90.

Read our full analysis of Grand Canyon Education’s results here.

Adtalem

Formerly known as DeVry Education Group, Adtalem Global Education is a global provider of workforce solutions and educational services.

Adtalem reported revenues of $462.3 million, up 10.8% year on year. This print topped analysts’ expectations by 2%. More broadly, it was a mixed quarter as it also produced a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates but full-year revenue guidance meeting analysts’ expectations.

Adtalem had the weakest full-year guidance update among its peers. The stock is down 29% since reporting and currently trades at $100.72.

Read our full, actionable report on Adtalem here, it’s free for active Edge members.

Universal Technical Institute

Founded in 1965, Universal Technical Institute is a leading provider of technical training programs, specializing in automotive, diesel, collision repair, motorcycle, and marine technicians.

Universal Technical Institute reported revenues of $222.4 million, up 13.3% year on year. This result surpassed analysts’ expectations by 1.3%. Overall, it was a strong quarter as it also produced a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and an impressive beat of analysts’ adjusted operating income estimates.

Universal Technical Institute achieved the highest full-year guidance raise among its peers. The stock is down 10.8% since reporting and currently trades at $26.30.

Read our full, actionable report on Universal Technical Institute here, it’s free for active Edge members.