Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Analyst Says

Key Points

• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods has raised their price target for Lincoln National from $42.00 to $43.00, indicating a potential upside of 8.21% based on the company's current stock price.
• Lincoln National reported a net margin of 6.34% and a return on equity of 19.14% in its most recent quarterly earnings, outperforming analysts' consensus estimates for earnings per share.
• Several research firms have recently upgraded their price targets for Lincoln National, with Barclays setting a target of $46.00 and Wells Fargo raising theirs to $38.00.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) had its price objective upped by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $42.00 to $43.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "market perform" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' price target points to a potential upside of 8.21% from the company's current price.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on LNC. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Lincoln National from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Thursday. Piper Sandler restated a "neutral" rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Lincoln National in a research report on Tuesday. National Bankshares set a $53.00 price target on shares of Lincoln National in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $42.00 to $46.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $43.09.

Lincoln National Stock Down 0.4%

LNC traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $39.74. The company's stock had a trading volume of 393,967 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,938,113. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.93, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Lincoln National has a 1 year low of $27.58 and a 1 year high of $43.66. The stock's 50-day moving average is $40.69 and its 200-day moving average is $35.87.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.91 by $0.45. The business had revenue of $4.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.65 billion. Lincoln National had a net margin of 6.34% and a return on equity of 19.14%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.87 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Lincoln National will post 7.69 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lincoln National news, EVP John Christopher Kennedy sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on 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 approximately $4,864,691.35. This represents a 3.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Lincoln National

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LNC. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in Lincoln National by 22.2% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 184,957 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,642,000 after purchasing an additional 33,644 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Lincoln National by 34.1% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 204,010 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $7,346,000 after buying an additional 51,823 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC acquired a new position in Lincoln National in the 1st quarter valued at about $293,000. DMC Group LLC raised its stake in Lincoln National by 47.1% in the 1st quarter. DMC Group LLC now owns 25,749 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $925,000 after purchasing an additional 8,250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smith Salley Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln National during the 1st quarter valued at about $268,000. 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.

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