Barclays Cuts Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) Price Target to $44.00

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) had its price target dropped by analysts at Barclays from $45.00 to $44.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Barclays‘s price target would suggest a potential upside of 33.84% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of Lincoln National from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $50.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Lincoln National in a research note on Monday, December 29th. National Bank Financial set a $45.00 price objective on shares of Lincoln National in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Lincoln National from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $41.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.46.

Lincoln National Price Performance

NYSE LNC traded down $0.81 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $32.88. The company had a trading volume of 537,072 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,218,259. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $40.04 and a 200-day moving average price of $41.07. The company has a market capitalization of $6.25 billion, a PE ratio of 6.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Lincoln National has a twelve month low of $27.58 and a twelve month high of $46.82.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $4.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.85 billion. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 18.52% and a net margin of 6.46%.Lincoln National’s quarterly revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.91 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Lincoln National will post 7.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln National

In other news, EVP James Waltman Reid sold 3,050 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.81, for a total value of $127,520.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 118,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,957,286.27. This represents a 2.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Sean Woodroffe sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.46, for a total value of $344,600.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 206,159 shares in the company, valued at $7,104,239.14. This represents a 4.63% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 21,050 shares of company stock worth $734,041. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Lincoln National by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,903,720 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $802,717,000 after buying an additional 1,183,934 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Lincoln National by 145.5% during the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 116,116 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,683,000 after acquiring an additional 68,827 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of Lincoln National by 30.3% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 203,931 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,180,000 after acquiring an additional 47,419 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 21.1% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,952,166 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $240,051,000 after acquiring an additional 1,035,505 shares during the period. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 101.9% in the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 285,105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,498,000 after acquiring an additional 143,862 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.81% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln National Company Profile

Lincoln National Corporation, doing business as Lincoln Financial Group, is a diversified financial services holding company focused on providing retirement, insurance, and wealth management solutions in the United States and select international markets. Headquartered in Radnor, Pennsylvania, the company operates through several business segments, including Retirement Plan Services, Life Insurance, and Group Protection. Its offerings are designed to help individuals, families, and institutions plan and prepare for their financial futures.

The Retirement Plan Services segment delivers recordkeeping, administrative services, and investment management for defined contribution and defined benefit plans.