Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twelve research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have given a hold recommendation and two have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $33.25.

LNC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $30.00 to $29.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Lincoln National from $37.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Lincoln National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Lincoln National from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Lincoln National from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th.

Lincoln National Stock Down 1.5 %

NYSE:LNC opened at $34.31 on Monday. Lincoln National has a one year low of $23.78 and a one year high of $36.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.74 and a 200 day simple moving average of $32.23. The company has a market capitalization of $5.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 1.77.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.64 by $0.42. Lincoln National had a net margin of 2.51% and a return on equity of 18.15%. The company had revenue of $4.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.61 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.23 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Lincoln National will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.25%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio is presently 128.57%.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln National

In related news, EVP John Christopher Kennedy sold 2,863 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.00, for a total value of $103,068.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 99,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,587,184. This represents a 2.79 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lincoln National

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 384.0% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 59,634 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,904,000 after purchasing an additional 47,312 shares during the period. Cetera Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Lincoln National by 48.1% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 20,503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $655,000 after buying an additional 6,655 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its position in Lincoln National by 55.4% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 14,289 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $444,000 after buying an additional 5,094 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln National in the second quarter worth $673,000. Finally, Gateway Investment Advisers LLC increased its position in shares of Lincoln National by 4.4% during the second quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 10,018 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $312,000 after acquiring an additional 426 shares during the period. 72.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.