Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) Price Target Raised to $47.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) had its price target lifted by Wells Fargo & Company from $44.00 to $47.00 in a research note published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Lincoln National from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. UBS Group increased their target price on Lincoln National from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. National Bank Financial set a $51.00 price target on Lincoln National in a report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Lincoln National from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Lincoln National from $42.00 to $40.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lincoln National presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $44.79.

Lincoln National Stock Up 1.9%

LNC stock opened at $39.46 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.54 billion, a PE ratio of 4.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a fifty day moving average of $36.23 and a 200-day moving average of $37.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.25. Lincoln National has a one year low of $32.18 and a one year high of $46.82.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $4.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.93 billion. Lincoln National had a net margin of 9.17% and a return on equity of 18.07%. The business’s revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.60 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Lincoln National will post 7.73 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Lincoln National’s payout ratio is 20.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lincoln National

In related news, EVP Craigt T. Beazer sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.45, for a total value of $1,033,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 103,906 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,579,561.70. This trade represents a 22.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lincoln National

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Lincoln National in the third quarter valued at $29,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln National during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln National in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. NBT Bank N A NY boosted its position in shares of Lincoln National by 2,051.1% in the 1st quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 968 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 923 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Lincoln National in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. 72.81% of the stock is currently 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.