LINCOLN EDUCATIONAL SERVICES CORP Q2 FY26 Results

During the second quarter and first half of the year, Lincoln continued to execute our mission of providing superior education and training to our students for high in-demand careers and generated strong operating results. Our performance and current third quarter trends lead to our reiterating our full year 2026 financial guidance. Employer demand for our graduates remains strong, and awareness of career opportunities in the skilled trades continues to grow. Following nearly 20% student start growth in the first quarter, we expected second-quarter growth to moderate to approximately half this rate and enrollment for the quarter did grow at approximately nine percent. However, our start growth for the quarter slowed to one percent, as fewer enrolled students than expected attended the first day of class. In addition, during the quarter, we observed changes in the student decision-making process that affected conversion from enrollment to start. We have taken, and continue to take, actions to address these trends and believe they are reaccelerating growth in new student starts as our August class is expected to be one of the largest in our history and we remain confident in our guidance for full-year student start growth of 10% to 14%. "A contributing factor to August’s projected strong starts is our re-invigorated high school recruiting platform. Last summer we started an overhaul and expansion of our high school recruiting team, given renewed interest by students, parents and even guidance counselors in the skilled trades. While we see improvements this year from these investments, we expect even more growth next year as the teams build on their relationships and reach even more prospective students. Our prior investments which have created a more efficient and scalable business model have continued to drive our operating efficiency and financial results as we have grown our revenues by over 22% and our Adjusted EBITDA by over 60% year to date, while continuing to make investments in our future growth and delivering superior student outcomes. "We're excited about the potential for our focused-program strategy, beginning with our new Suitland campus, which will expand access to high-demand Electrical and HVAC training in the Washington, D.C. area - a market where data center growth is driving strong tradesperson demand. This model costs less than half of a traditional campus buildout and can be constructed faster, letting us respond more quickly to employer needs in the region. Between our strong first half, continued execution of our growth strategy, improving cash generation, and the ongoing national demand for skilled trades talent, we remain confident in achieving our full-year 2026 guidance and progressing toward our 2030 targets of $850 million in revenue and $150 million in Adjusted EBITDA."