Wells Fargo & Company Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) Stock

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) had its target price raised by investment analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $33.00 to $35.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "equal weight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price target suggests a potential upside of 2.70% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Barclays raised their price target on Lincoln National from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Lincoln National from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Lincoln National from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Wall Street Zen raised Lincoln National from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Lincoln National from $38.00 to $36.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $38.78.

Lincoln National Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of LNC stock traded down $0.17 on Thursday, reaching $34.08. 1,463,401 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,675,398. Lincoln National has a 52 week low of $27.58 and a 52 week high of $39.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.82 billion, a PE ratio of 4.84, a P/E/G ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 1.39. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $33.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $33.96.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.06. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 18.71% and a net margin of 7.00%. The firm had revenue of $4.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.71 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.41 EPS. Lincoln National's quarterly revenue was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Lincoln National will post 7.69 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln National

In other Lincoln National news, EVP Sean Woodroffe sold 43,622 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.78, for a total transaction of $1,429,929.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 154,102 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,051,463.56. This represents a 22.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Brian Kroll sold 10,075 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.10, for a total value of $333,482.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 48,743 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,613,393.30. The trade was a 17.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lincoln National

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LNC. Hollencrest Capital Management boosted its holdings in Lincoln National by 383.2% in the first quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 749 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 594 shares during the period. M Holdings Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Lincoln National in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln National during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln National during the 1st quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln National during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.81% of the company's stock.

Lincoln National Company Profile

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.