Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) Reaches New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Lincoln National's stock reached a new 52-week high of $40.16, with trading volume of 1,135 shares.
• The company recently reported earnings per share (EPS) of $2.36 for the quarter, surpassing estimates of $1.91, although revenue of $4.04 billion fell short of the anticipated $4.65 billion.
• Lincoln National pays a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share, yielding 4.5%, with a payout ratio of 31.41%.

Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $39.87 and last traded at $40.16, with a volume of 1135 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $39.70.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on LNC. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Lincoln National from $38.00 to $36.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Cfra Research upgraded Lincoln National to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a "positive" rating on shares of Lincoln National in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Lincoln National from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $39.70.

Lincoln National Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.61 billion, a PE ratio of 7.01, a PEG ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.42. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $35.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $34.68.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.45. The business had revenue of $4.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.65 billion. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 19.14% and a net margin of 6.34%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.87 EPS. Research analysts expect that Lincoln National Corporation will post 7.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.5%. Lincoln National's payout ratio is 31.41%.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln National

In other Lincoln National news, EVP Brian Kroll sold 10,075 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.10, for a total transaction of $333,482.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 48,743 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,613,393.30. This represents a 17.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP John Christopher Kennedy sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.29, for a total transaction of $196,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 123,815 shares in the company, valued at $4,864,691.35. This represents a 3.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 58,697 shares of company stock valued at $1,959,862 in the last three months. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lincoln National

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LNC. State Street Corp increased its position in Lincoln National by 0.7% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,199,526 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $214,504,000 after purchasing an additional 40,676 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Lincoln National by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,916,661 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $170,116,000 after acquiring an additional 61,873 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Lincoln National by 20.0% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,645,447 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $160,732,000 after buying an additional 774,721 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 7.2% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,084,433 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $110,753,000 after acquiring an additional 208,114 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management grew its position in shares of Lincoln National by 16.9% during the second quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 2,736,180 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $94,672,000 after buying an additional 394,584 shares in the last quarter. 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.