Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) Stock Price Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC)’s share price passed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Monday. The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $39.03 and traded as high as $41.28. Lincoln National shares last traded at $40.9840, with a volume of 1,894,236 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on LNC shares. Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $47.00 target price on shares of Lincoln National in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Lincoln National from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Lincoln National from $44.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Lincoln National from $37.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, National Bank Financial set a $49.00 target price on Lincoln National in a research report on Wednesday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $47.62.

Lincoln National Stock Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $43.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.09. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market cap of $7.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.16.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $4.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.89 billion. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 17.35% and a net margin of 12.21%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.36 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Lincoln National Corporation will post 7.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln National Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 12th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 9th. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lincoln National

In other news, Director Gary Kelly sold 15,007 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $26.50, for a total transaction of $397,685.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Sean Woodroffe sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.28, for a total transaction of $498,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 119,947 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,431,200.16. The trade was a 8.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lincoln National

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LNC. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in Lincoln National by 24.1% in the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 5,562 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $224,000 after acquiring an additional 1,079 shares during the period. Parrish Capital LLC lifted its position in Lincoln National by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Parrish Capital LLC now owns 29,592 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,191,000 after buying an additional 890 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 5.4% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 141,961 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,018,000 after purchasing an additional 7,292 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,106,302 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $215,858,000 after buying an additional 215,007 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in Lincoln National by 25.1% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 52,570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,858,000 after purchasing an additional 10,542 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.81% of the company’s stock.

About Lincoln National

Lincoln National Corporation, operating under the Lincoln Financial Group brand, is a financial services company that provides insurance and retirement solutions primarily in the United States. Its businesses serve individuals, families, employers and institutions through a portfolio of life insurance, annuities and workplace benefit products.

The company’s offerings include term and permanent life insurance, variable and fixed annuities, and retirement plan services designed to support income and financial planning needs.