Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $36.50 and last traded at $36.09, with a volume of 1057965 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $32.78.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Lincoln National from $37.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Lincoln National in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. They set a “hold” rating and a $34.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Lincoln National from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lincoln National from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $33.00.

Lincoln National Stock Up 12.4 %

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $31.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $31.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.28 billion, a PE ratio of 26.32, a PEG ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.42. The company had revenue of $4.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.61 billion. Lincoln National had a net margin of 2.51% and a return on equity of 18.15%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.23 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Lincoln National Co. will post 5.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln National Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. Lincoln National’s payout ratio is 128.57%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Lincoln National by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 26,372 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $842,000 after purchasing an additional 1,085 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 249.4% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 873 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 97.3% in the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 75,018 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,395,000 after acquiring an additional 36,992 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln National during the 1st quarter worth $207,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Lincoln National during the 1st quarter worth approximately $505,000. 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.