Analysts Set Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC) Target Price at $35.91

Shares of Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eleven ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $35.91.

LNC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Lincoln National from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Lincoln National from $42.00 to $32.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Barclays lifted their target price on Lincoln National from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Lincoln National from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Lincoln National from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th.

Lincoln National Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of Lincoln National stock opened at $30.26 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.27 and a quick ratio of 0.27. Lincoln National has a 1-year low of $25.80 and a 1-year high of $39.85. The business has a 50-day moving average of $35.67 and a 200-day moving average of $34.07. The company has a market capitalization of $5.16 billion, a PE ratio of 1.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.56.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.04. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 18.47% and a net margin of 17.76%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Lincoln National will post 7.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln National Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.95%. Lincoln National’s payout ratio is currently 9.79%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lincoln National

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Lincoln National during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. M Holdings Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Lincoln National in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new position in Lincoln National in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Lincoln National during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Lincoln National during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. 72.81% of the stock is owned by 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.