Morgan Stanley Cuts Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) Price Target to $50.00

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) had its target price decreased by Morgan Stanley from $54.00 to $50.00 in a research note published on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on LNC. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Lincoln National from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Mizuho started coverage on shares of Lincoln National in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $52.00 price target for the company. Finally, National Bank Financial set a $45.00 price target on Lincoln National in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.58.

Lincoln National Price Performance

Lincoln National stock opened at $36.03 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.78, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. Lincoln National has a 12 month low of $27.58 and a 12 month high of $46.82. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $42.04 and its 200-day moving average is $41.43.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $4.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.85 billion. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 18.52% and a net margin of 6.46%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.91 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Lincoln National will post 7.69 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln National Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. Lincoln National’s payout ratio is currently 33.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lincoln National

In related news, EVP James Waltman Reid sold 3,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.81, for a total transaction of $127,520.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 118,567 shares in the company, valued at $4,957,286.27. This represents a 2.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP John Christopher Kennedy sold 3,519 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.15, for a total value of $155,363.85. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 118,985 shares in the company, valued at $5,253,187.75. This trade represents a 2.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.51% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Advisors Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln National during the second quarter worth $28,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Lincoln National during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in Lincoln National during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new position in Lincoln National during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lincoln National in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Institutional investors own 72.81% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln National Company Profile

Lincoln National Corporation, doing business as Lincoln Financial Group, is a diversified financial services holding company focused on providing retirement, insurance, and wealth management solutions in the United States and select international markets. Headquartered in Radnor, Pennsylvania, the company operates through several business segments, including Retirement Plan Services, Life Insurance, and Group Protection. Its offerings are designed to help individuals, families, and institutions plan and prepare for their financial futures.

The Retirement Plan Services segment delivers recordkeeping, administrative services, and investment management for defined contribution and defined benefit plans.