Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) Hits New 52-Week High After Dividend Announcement

Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC) reached a new 52-week high on Friday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as $32.47 and last traded at $32.34, with a volume of 307241 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $31.65.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.52%. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.62%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on LNC. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Lincoln National from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Lincoln National from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $26.00 to $34.00 in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Lincoln National from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Lincoln National from $28.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Finally, TheStreet lowered Lincoln National from a “c” rating to a “d+” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $29.90.

Lincoln National Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $27.30. The company has a market cap of $5.54 billion, a PE ratio of 4.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.25 and a beta of 1.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.27. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 19.50% and a net margin of 11.31%. The company had revenue of $4.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.64 billion. On average, equities analysts predict that Lincoln National Co. will post 5.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lincoln National

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LNC. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln National during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lincoln National by 3,930.8% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,048 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 1,022 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln National during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln National during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln National during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 72.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lincoln National Company Profile

Lincoln National Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates multiple insurance and retirement businesses in the United States. It operates in four segments: Life Insurance, Annuities, Group Protection, and Retirement Plan Services. The Life Insurance segment provides life insurance products, including term insurance, universal life insurance (UL), indexed universal life insurance, variable universal life insurance (VUL), linked-benefit UL and VUL products, and critical illness and long-term care riders.