Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) Shares Gap Up to $30.67

Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC) shares gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $30.67, but opened at $31.50. Lincoln National shares last traded at $31.61, with a volume of 157,263 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on LNC. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of Lincoln National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. TheStreet lowered shares of Lincoln National from a “c” rating to a “d+” rating in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $28.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $29.90.

Lincoln National Stock Up 3.6 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $5.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.20, a PEG ratio of 0.24 and a beta of 1.80. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $29.10 and its 200 day moving average is $27.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a current ratio of 0.26.

Lincoln National Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 10th were given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.67%. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.62%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lincoln National

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Security Financial Services INC. lifted its position in Lincoln National by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Security Financial Services INC. now owns 8,803 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $237,000 after buying an additional 385 shares in the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 32.6% in the 1st quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,667 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 12,557 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $310,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 14.4% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,238 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 532 shares during the period. Finally, Yousif Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 91,833 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,477,000 after purchasing an additional 535 shares during the period. 72.81% of the stock is owned by 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.