Wall Street Zen Upgrades Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) to "Hold"

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on LNC. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on Lincoln National from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Piper Sandler lowered 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. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $32.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Barclays increased their price objective 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, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $36.00 to $31.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $37.00.

Lincoln National Trading Down 0.6%

Lincoln National stock opened at $34.77 on Friday. Lincoln National has a 12-month low of $27.58 and a 12-month high of $39.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.94, a P/E/G ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 1.39. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $33.41 and a 200 day moving average of $33.82. The company has a current ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $4.69 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.71 billion. Lincoln National had a net margin of 7.00% and a return on equity of 18.71%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.41 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Lincoln National will post 7.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Lincoln National news, EVP Sean Woodroffe sold 43,622 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.78, for a total transaction of $1,429,929.16. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 154,102 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,051,463.56. This represents a 22.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Brian Kroll sold 10,075 shares of Lincoln National stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was 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. The trade was a 17.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.51% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. 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 worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 594 shares in the last quarter. M Holdings Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Lincoln National during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln National in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Lincoln National during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln National in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. 72.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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