Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC) Receives Consensus Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC) has been given an average rating of “Hold” by the fifteen research firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have assigned a hold recommendation and seven have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $47.0714.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on LNC shares. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $37.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Lincoln National from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Barclays upgraded Lincoln National from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $42.00 to $45.00 in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, National Bank Financial set a $50.00 price target on Lincoln National in a research report on Monday, August 24th.

Lincoln National Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:LNC opened at $43.31 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.75, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.14. Lincoln National has a 12-month low of $32.18 and a 12-month high of $47.67. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $41.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.93. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.24 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $4.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.89 billion. Lincoln National had a net margin of 12.21% and a return on equity of 17.35%. Lincoln National’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.36 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Lincoln National will post 7.97 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, October 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 9th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.60%.

Insider Activity at Lincoln National

In other Lincoln National news, EVP Craigt T. Beazer sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.45, for a total transaction of $1,033,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 103,906 shares in the company, valued at $3,579,561.70. This represents a 22.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Sean Woodroffe sold 11,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.28, for a total transaction of $498,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 119,947 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,431,200.16. The trade was a 8.40% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 56,007 shares of company stock worth $1,929,266 in the last three months. 1.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lincoln National

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LNC. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln National in the second quarter worth $3,726,000. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in shares of Lincoln National by 3,440.0% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 7,021,182 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $248,199,000 after buying an additional 6,822,846 shares in the last quarter. Studio Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Lincoln National during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $821,000. Wedmont Private Capital increased its position in shares of Lincoln National by 25.5% in the 2nd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 14,183 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $501,000 after purchasing an additional 2,883 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 11.8% in the 2nd quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 27,939 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $988,000 after purchasing an additional 2,957 shares in the last quarter. 72.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Lincoln National

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.