Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC) Receives $33.40 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the ten research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $33.40.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on LNC shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Lincoln National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Lincoln National from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $29.00 to $28.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Lincoln National from $38.00 to $36.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th.

Lincoln National Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of Lincoln National stock opened at $35.36 on Tuesday. Lincoln National has a 1-year low of $25.09 and a 1-year high of $36.98. The stock has a market cap of $6.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.26 and a beta of 1.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $33.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $32.39.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.42. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 18.15% and a net margin of 2.51%. The business had revenue of $4.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.61 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.23 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Lincoln National will post 6.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln National Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 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 5.09%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio is presently 128.57%.

Insider Activity at Lincoln National

In other Lincoln National news, EVP John Christopher Kennedy sold 2,863 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.00, for a total value of $103,068.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 99,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,587,184. This represents a 2.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lincoln National

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in Lincoln National by 9.1% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 45,844 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,426,000 after buying an additional 3,821 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Lincoln National by 15.9% during the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 89,928 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,797,000 after acquiring an additional 12,339 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in Lincoln National by 11.9% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 148,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,758,000 after purchasing an additional 15,778 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank acquired a new position in Lincoln National in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,387,000. Finally, AXA S.A. acquired a new stake in Lincoln National during the second quarter worth approximately $2,008,000. 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.