Morgan Stanley Upgrades Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) to "Overweight"

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley upgraded Lincoln National's stock rating from "equal weight" to "overweight," indicating increased investor confidence in the company's performance.
• The company reported $2.36 earnings per share in its latest quarter, significantly exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.91.
• Lincoln National has an average price target of $41.00, with 2 Buy ratings, 7 Hold ratings, and 2 Sell ratings from various analysts.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Wolfe Research upgraded Lincoln National to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 16th. National Bankshares set a $41.00 target price on Lincoln National in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Lincoln National from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Lincoln National from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated a "positive" rating on shares of Lincoln National in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lincoln National has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $39.45.

Lincoln National Trading Up 3.4%

NYSE LNC opened at $41.17 on Friday. Lincoln National has a twelve month low of $27.58 and a twelve month high of $43.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.26. The stock has a market cap of $7.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.18, a PEG ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.48. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $39.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $35.45.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Lincoln National

In related news, EVP John Christopher Kennedy sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.29, for a total value of $196,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 123,815 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,864,691.35. This trade represents a 3.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Lincoln National

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lincoln National by 61.0% in the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 250,751 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,678,000 after acquiring an additional 95,015 shares during the period. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC bought a new position in Lincoln National in the second quarter worth $256,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its position in Lincoln National by 0.3% in the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 125,845 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,354,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the period. Cim Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 99.6% during the 2nd quarter. Cim Investment Management Inc. now owns 33,292 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,104,000 after acquiring an additional 16,616 shares during the period. Finally, Advisory Services Network LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 73,671 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,808,000 after acquiring an additional 3,003 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 72.81% of the company's stock.

About Lincoln National

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.