Brokerages Set Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC) Target Price at $47.07

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

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. National Bank Financial set a $50.00 target price on shares of Lincoln National in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Lincoln National from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Lincoln National from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $47.00 target price on shares of Lincoln National in a report on Thursday, July 30th.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln National

In other Lincoln National news, EVP Craigt T. Beazer sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 103,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,579,561.70. This represents a 22.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Sean Woodroffe sold 11,000 shares of the company’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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 119,947 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,431,200.16. This represents a 8.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 56,007 shares of company stock worth $1,929,266 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lincoln National

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LNC. Bain Capital Prairie LLC purchased a new position in Lincoln National during the fourth quarter valued at $835,360,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Lincoln National by 24.4% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,755,506 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $275,304,000 after buying an additional 1,522,179 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in Lincoln National by 3,440.0% in 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. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 0.7% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,199,526 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $214,504,000 after buying an additional 40,676 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 3.9% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,823,152 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $135,722,000 after buying an additional 141,994 shares during the period. 72.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lincoln National Price Performance

LNC opened at $43.31 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.15. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $41.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $37.94. Lincoln National has a 52-week low of $32.18 and a 52-week high of $47.67.

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

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 12th will be given 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 dividend yield of 4.2%. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.60%.

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.