Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) Rating Increased to Overweight at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating in a report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have $48.00 target price on the financial services provider’s stock, up from their prior target price of $41.00.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 23rd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Lincoln National from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. National Bank Financial set a $45.00 price target on Lincoln National in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Mizuho assumed coverage on Lincoln National in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $52.00 target price on the stock. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Lincoln National from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $46.58.

Lincoln National Stock Performance

Shares of LNC stock opened at $36.03 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $42.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27. Lincoln National has a 1 year low of $27.58 and a 1 year high of $46.82. The firm has a market cap of $6.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.78, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.30.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $4.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.85 billion. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 18.52% and a net margin of 6.46%.The business’s revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.91 EPS. Analysts predict that Lincoln National will post 7.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.90%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lincoln National news, EVP John Christopher Kennedy sold 3,519 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 owned 118,985 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,253,187.75. This represents a 2.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP James Waltman Reid sold 3,050 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.81, for a total value of $127,520.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 118,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,957,286.27. This trade represents a 2.51% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bain Capital Prairie LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln National during the 4th quarter worth approximately $835,360,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Lincoln National in the second quarter valued at $87,362,000. Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in shares of Lincoln National by 58.7% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,681,158 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $163,922,000 after buying an additional 1,361,835 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,903,720 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $802,717,000 after buying an additional 1,183,934 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Lincoln National by 25.3% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,730,727 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $231,121,000 after acquiring an additional 1,157,599 shares in the last quarter. 72.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lincoln National Company Profile

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.