Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) Research Coverage Started at Mizuho

Mizuho started coverage on shares of Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) in a report issued on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm issued an outperform rating and a $52.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock.

LNC has been the topic of a number of other reports. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Lincoln National from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. Zacks Research cut Lincoln National from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Lincoln National from $52.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Lincoln National to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $42.00 price target on shares of Lincoln National in a report on Tuesday, October 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.67.

Lincoln National Stock Performance

Shares of LNC opened at $45.83 on Tuesday. Lincoln National has a one year low of $27.58 and a one year high of $46.61. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $41.22 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.28 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.70 billion, a PE ratio of 4.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.33.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.84 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $4.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.80 billion. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 18.77% and a net margin of 11.49%.During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.06 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Lincoln National will post 7.69 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 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 12th 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 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 12th. Lincoln National’s payout ratio is presently 16.16%.

Insider Activity at Lincoln National

In other Lincoln National news, Director Owen Ryan purchased 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $42.17 per share, with a total value of $84,340.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 12,000 shares in the company, valued at $506,040. The trade was a 20.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP John Christopher Kennedy sold 3,519 shares of the company’s 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 approximately $5,253,187.75. This trade represents a 2.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lincoln National

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LNC. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Lincoln National in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new stake in Lincoln National in the third quarter worth $32,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Lincoln National during the second quarter valued at $28,000. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln National in the 2nd quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Lincoln National in the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.