Mizuho Begins Coverage on Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC)

Investment analysts at Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage set an “outperform” rating and a $52.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock. Mizuho’s target price indicates a potential upside of 14.98% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Zacks Research lowered Lincoln National from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Wolfe Research upgraded Lincoln National to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Lincoln National in a research note on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Lincoln National in a research report on Monday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.67.

Lincoln National Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of LNC opened at $45.23 on Tuesday. Lincoln National has a 52-week low of $27.58 and a 52-week high of $46.61. The company has a market capitalization of $8.59 billion, a PE ratio of 4.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.33. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $40.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.84 by $0.20. Lincoln National had a net margin of 11.49% and a return on equity of 18.77%. The firm had revenue of $4.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.80 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.06 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Lincoln National will post 7.69 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln National

In other Lincoln National news, EVP John Christopher Kennedy sold 3,519 shares of Lincoln National stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.15, for a total value of $155,363.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 118,985 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,253,187.75. The trade was a 2.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Owen Ryan purchased 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $42.17 per share, for a total transaction of $84,340.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 12,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $506,040. This trade represents a 20.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lincoln National

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Phillips Financial Management LLC increased its position in shares of Lincoln National by 1.2% during the third quarter. Phillips Financial Management LLC now owns 21,857 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $881,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in Lincoln National by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 5,401 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $187,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares during the period. Evergreen Capital Management LLC raised its position in Lincoln National by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 8,815 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $305,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 8,979 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $362,000 after buying an additional 286 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC grew its position in shares of Lincoln National by 1.7% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 17,927 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $723,000 after buying an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.81% of the company’s stock.

About Lincoln National

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.