Lincoln National (LNC) Competitors

Brighthouse Financial (NASDAQ:BHF) and Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, profitability, earnings, dividends, media sentiment, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Does the media refer more to BHF or LNC?

In the previous week, Lincoln National had 11 more articles in the media than Brighthouse Financial. MarketBeat recorded 20 mentions for Lincoln National and 9 mentions for Brighthouse Financial. Lincoln National's average media sentiment score of 0.97 beat Brighthouse Financial's score of 0.23 indicating that Lincoln National is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Brighthouse Financial	4 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral
Lincoln National	9 Very Positive mention(s)	4 Positive mention(s)	4 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do analysts recommend BHF or LNC?

Brighthouse Financial currently has a consensus price target of $60.67, suggesting a potential upside of 36.27%. Lincoln National has a consensus price target of $39.22, suggesting a potential upside of 2.76%. Given Brighthouse Financial's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Brighthouse Financial is more favorable than Lincoln National.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Brighthouse Financial	2 Sell rating(s)	4 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.13
Lincoln National	1 Sell rating(s)	7 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00

Do institutionals and insiders have more ownership in BHF or LNC?

81.2% of Brighthouse Financial shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 72.8% of Lincoln National shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.4% of Brighthouse Financial shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.5% of Lincoln National shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Which has more volatility & risk, BHF or LNC?

Brighthouse Financial has a beta of 0.88, indicating that its stock price is 12% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lincoln National has a beta of 1.42, indicating that its stock price is 42% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Is BHF or LNC more profitable?

Brighthouse Financial has a net margin of 10.24% compared to Lincoln National's net margin of 6.34%. Brighthouse Financial's return on equity of 21.49% beat Lincoln National's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Brighthouse Financial	10.24%	21.49%	0.48%
Lincoln National	6.34%	19.14%	0.38%

Which has better valuation & earnings, BHF or LNC?

Lincoln National has higher revenue and earnings than Brighthouse Financial. Brighthouse Financial is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Lincoln National, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Brighthouse Financial	$4.72B	0.54	$388M	$8.34	5.34
Lincoln National	$18.44B	0.39	$3.28B	$5.73	6.66

Summary

Brighthouse Financial beats Lincoln National on 10 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.