vs

Side-by-side financial comparison of LINCOLN EDUCATIONAL SERVICES CORP (LINC) and Stellar Bancorp, Inc. (STEL). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

LINCOLN EDUCATIONAL SERVICES CORP is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($142.9M vs $108.9M, roughly 1.3× Stellar Bancorp, Inc.). Stellar Bancorp, Inc. runs the higher net margin — 24.0% vs 8.9%, a 15.1% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, LINCOLN EDUCATIONAL SERVICES CORP posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (19.7% vs 0.8%). Stellar Bancorp, Inc. produced more free cash flow last quarter ($92.6M vs $25.0M). Over the past eight quarters, LINCOLN EDUCATIONAL SERVICES CORP's revenue compounded faster (17.6% CAGR vs 0.2%).

Lincoln Tech is an American group of for-profit postsecondary vocational institutions headquartered in Parsippany, New Jersey with campuses in Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Texas. Each campus is owned and operated by Lincoln Educational Services Corporation, a provider of career-oriented post-secondary education.

Stellar Bancorp, Inc. is a United States-based financial holding company that operates via its wholly-owned banking subsidiary. It provides a full suite of retail and commercial banking services, including deposit products, personal and commercial loans, mortgage services, and wealth management solutions, serving individual consumers, small businesses, and regional corporate clients.

LINC vs STEL — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
LINC
LINC
1.3× larger
LINC
$142.9M
$108.9M
STEL
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
LINC
LINC
+18.8% gap
LINC
19.7%
0.8%
STEL
Higher net margin
STEL
STEL
15.1% more per $
STEL
24.0%
8.9%
LINC
More free cash flow
STEL
STEL
$67.6M more FCF
STEL
$92.6M
$25.0M
LINC
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
LINC
LINC
Annualised
LINC
17.6%
0.2%
STEL

Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q4 FY2025

Metric
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Revenue
$142.9M
$108.9M
Net Profit
$12.7M
$26.1M
Gross Margin
62.3%
Operating Margin
12.4%
29.0%
Net Margin
8.9%
24.0%
Revenue YoY
19.7%
0.8%
Net Profit YoY
85.9%
3.7%
EPS (diluted)
$0.41
$0.52

Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.

8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend

Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.

Revenue
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Q4 25
$142.9M
$108.9M
Q3 25
$141.4M
$105.6M
Q2 25
$116.5M
$104.1M
Q1 25
$117.5M
$104.8M
Q4 24
$119.4M
$108.0M
Q3 24
$114.4M
$107.8M
Q2 24
$102.9M
$106.8M
Q1 24
$103.4M
$108.4M
Net Profit
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Q4 25
$12.7M
$26.1M
Q3 25
$3.8M
$25.7M
Q2 25
$1.6M
$26.4M
Q1 25
$1.9M
$24.7M
Q4 24
$6.8M
$25.2M
Q3 24
$4.0M
$33.9M
Q2 24
$-682.0K
$29.8M
Q1 24
$-214.0K
$26.1M
Gross Margin
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Q4 25
62.3%
Q3 25
59.5%
Q2 25
59.8%
Q1 25
59.7%
Q4 24
62.2%
Q3 24
58.0%
Q2 24
55.7%
Q1 24
58.4%
Operating Margin
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Q4 25
12.4%
29.0%
Q3 25
4.4%
30.5%
Q2 25
2.5%
31.7%
Q1 25
2.9%
29.6%
Q4 24
9.2%
29.4%
Q3 24
5.1%
39.6%
Q2 24
-1.1%
35.1%
Q1 24
-0.4%
30.4%
Net Margin
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Q4 25
8.9%
24.0%
Q3 25
2.7%
24.3%
Q2 25
1.3%
25.3%
Q1 25
1.7%
23.6%
Q4 24
5.7%
23.3%
Q3 24
3.5%
31.4%
Q2 24
-0.7%
27.9%
Q1 24
-0.2%
24.1%
EPS (diluted)
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Q4 25
$0.41
$0.52
Q3 25
$0.12
$0.50
Q2 25
$0.05
$0.51
Q1 25
$0.06
$0.46
Q4 24
$0.22
$0.47
Q3 24
$0.13
$0.63
Q2 24
$-0.02
$0.56
Q1 24
$-0.01
$0.49

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.

Metric
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$28.5M
$419.5M
Total DebtLower is stronger
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$199.7M
$1.7B
Total Assets
$493.2M
$10.8B
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Q4 25
$28.5M
$419.5M
Q3 25
$13.5M
$728.4M
Q2 25
$16.7M
$578.1M
Q1 25
$28.7M
$560.6M
Q4 24
$59.3M
$911.2M
Q3 24
$54.0M
$516.2M
Q2 24
$67.0M
$490.3M
Q1 24
$68.6M
$399.7M
Stockholders' Equity
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Q4 25
$199.7M
$1.7B
Q3 25
$185.9M
$1.7B
Q2 25
$180.7M
$1.6B
Q1 25
$177.8M
$1.6B
Q4 24
$178.3M
$1.6B
Q3 24
$170.0M
$1.6B
Q2 24
$164.9M
$1.6B
Q1 24
$164.5M
$1.5B
Total Assets
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Q4 25
$493.2M
$10.8B
Q3 25
$466.9M
$10.6B
Q2 25
$447.3M
$10.5B
Q1 25
$427.4M
$10.4B
Q4 24
$436.6M
$10.9B
Q3 24
$404.0M
$10.6B
Q2 24
$366.4M
$10.7B
Q1 24
$355.2M
$10.7B

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.

Metric
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$43.5M
$97.0M
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
$25.0M
$92.6M
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
17.5%
85.0%
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
13.0%
4.0%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
3.43×
3.71×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters
$-27.3M
$173.2M

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Q4 25
$43.5M
$97.0M
Q3 25
$23.9M
$63.6M
Q2 25
$299.0K
$25.8M
Q1 25
$-8.4M
$-5.7M
Q4 24
$30.3M
$132.6M
Q3 24
$5.6M
$59.5M
Q2 24
$8.3M
$38.1M
Q1 24
$-14.9M
$31.1M
Free Cash Flow
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Q4 25
$25.0M
$92.6M
Q3 25
$2.0M
$62.5M
Q2 25
$-26.1M
$24.5M
Q1 25
$-28.3M
$-6.4M
Q4 24
$5.5M
$128.0M
Q3 24
$-13.8M
$57.7M
Q2 24
$-2.7M
$37.1M
Q1 24
$-16.6M
$30.5M
FCF Margin
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Q4 25
17.5%
85.0%
Q3 25
1.4%
59.2%
Q2 25
-22.4%
23.6%
Q1 25
-24.1%
-6.2%
Q4 24
4.6%
118.5%
Q3 24
-12.0%
53.5%
Q2 24
-2.6%
34.8%
Q1 24
-16.1%
28.2%
Capex Intensity
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Q4 25
13.0%
4.0%
Q3 25
15.5%
1.1%
Q2 25
22.7%
1.2%
Q1 25
16.9%
0.7%
Q4 24
20.8%
4.3%
Q3 24
16.9%
1.7%
Q2 24
10.7%
0.9%
Q1 24
1.6%
0.5%
Cash Conversion
LINC
LINC
STEL
STEL
Q4 25
3.43×
3.71×
Q3 25
6.29×
2.48×
Q2 25
0.19×
0.98×
Q1 25
-4.31×
-0.23×
Q4 24
4.43×
5.26×
Q3 24
1.42×
1.76×
Q2 24
1.28×
Q1 24
1.19×

Financial Flow Comparison

Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

LINC
LINC

Transferred Over Time$136.0M95%
Transferred At Point In Time$6.9M5%

STEL
STEL

Segment breakdown not available.

Related Comparisons