Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the sixteen analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have given a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $44.7857.

Several analysts have recently commented on LNC shares. Barclays raised Lincoln National from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $42.00 to $45.00 in a research note on Monday, July 6th. National Bank Financial set a $51.00 price objective on Lincoln National in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $43.00 to $40.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Mizuho boosted their target price on Lincoln National from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their target price on Lincoln National from $41.00 to $37.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th.

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 on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.45, for a total value of $1,033,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 103,906 shares in the company, valued at $3,579,561.70. This represents a 22.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lincoln National

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LNC. Bain Capital Prairie LLC purchased a new stake in Lincoln National during the fourth quarter worth about $835,360,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Lincoln National in the fourth quarter valued at about $101,114,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake 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 valued at $275,304,000 after acquiring an additional 1,522,179 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in shares of Lincoln National by 58.7% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,681,158 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $163,922,000 after acquiring an additional 1,361,835 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of Lincoln National during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,831,000. 72.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lincoln National Stock Up 2.9%

Lincoln National stock opened at $40.88 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.17. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $36.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $37.69. Lincoln National has a 1-year low of $32.18 and a 1-year high of $46.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $4.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.93 billion. Lincoln National had a net margin of 9.17% and a return on equity of 18.07%. The firm’s revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.60 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Lincoln National will post 7.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. Lincoln National’s payout ratio is currently 20.88%.

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.