Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) Given “Outperform” Rating at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reiterated by analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $43.00 target price on the financial services provider’s stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ target price indicates a potential upside of 20.29% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Lincoln National in a report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research lowered Lincoln National from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $50.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $43.00 to $38.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Lincoln National from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $41.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.38.

Lincoln National Price Performance

Shares of LNC stock traded down $0.18 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $35.75. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,006,760 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,342,315. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The business has a fifty day moving average of $37.82 and a 200-day moving average of $40.41. Lincoln National has a twelve month low of $27.58 and a twelve month high of $46.82. The stock has a market cap of $6.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.30.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $4.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.85 billion. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 18.52% and a net margin of 6.46%.The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.91 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Lincoln National will post 7.69 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lincoln National

In related news, major shareholder National Life Insuranc Lincoln acquired 2,254,486 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was bought at an average price of $11.09 per share, with a total value of $25,002,249.74. Following the purchase, the insider directly owned 9,784,322 shares in the company, valued at $108,508,130.98. The trade was a 29.94% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP James Waltman Reid sold 3,050 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.81, for a total transaction of $127,520.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 118,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,957,286.27. The trade was a 2.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 21,050 shares of company stock worth $734,041 in the last 90 days. 0.51% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lincoln National

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LNC. Advisors Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Lincoln National during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln National in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln National in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln National during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln National during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. 72.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.