Lincoln National Corporation LNC is strategically positioned for growth, supported by its ongoing business transformation, driven by growth in spread-based annuity products, improving momentum in Life Insurance and Group Protection, disciplined expense management and a strengthened capital position that supports sustainable earnings growth.
With a market capitalization of $7.2 billion, Lincoln National is a diversified life insurance and investment management company that provides a wide range of wealth accumulation, wealth protection, group protection and retirement products and solutions. The company operates multiple insurance businesses through four business segments: Annuities, Life Insurance, Group Protection and Retirement Plan Services. LNC stock has risen 13.7% over the past year compared with the industry’s average gain of 16.4%.
Courtesy of solid prospects, LNC currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Where Do Estimates for LNC Stand?
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Lincoln National’s 2026 earnings is pegged at $7.72 per share. In the past 30 days, it has witnessed two upward estimate revisions against one in the opposite direction. Furthermore, the consensus mark for revenues is pegged at $19.5 billion for 2026, indicating a 2.2% year-over-year rise. It beat earnings estimates in each of the past four quarters, with an average surprise of 13.8%.
Lincoln National Corporation Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Lincoln National Corporation price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Lincoln National Corporation Quote
LNC Stock’s Growth Drivers
Lincoln National continues to benefit from the transformation of its annuity franchise toward products that generate steadier earnings and require less capital. The company has been emphasizing spread-based offerings such as fixed indexed annuities and RILAs while reducing exposure to more market-sensitive business. This shift is helping improve the quality of earnings and supporting long-term cash flow generation. In the first quarter of 2026, annuity sales rose 4% year over year to $3.9 billion, with spread-based products accounting for nearly two-thirds of total sales.
The Life Insurance segment is emerging as another key growth driver. LNC has repositioned the business toward accumulation-focused products, executive benefits solutions and offerings with more predictable profitability characteristics. These product lines are expected to support sales growth while enhancing profitability and capital efficiency. Total life insurance sales climbed 33% year over year to $129 million in the first quarter of 2026.
LNC continues to expand its Group Protection franchise through targeted market strategies, supplemental health offerings and enhanced digital tools for employers and brokers. These efforts helped drive a 10.9% increase in operating income to $112 million in the first quarter of 2026.
Lincoln National is also investing heavily in technology modernization and operational efficiency initiatives across its businesses. The company is expanding digital capabilities, automating processes and enhancing self-service tools to improve customer and distributor experiences while creating operating leverage. These initiatives are supporting growth in Retirement Plan Services.
In addition, LNC remains focused on disciplined capital management, free cash flow generation and balance sheet strength. As of March 31, 2026, holding company available liquidity rose to $805 million (net of prefunding) from $655 million at the 2025-end. Lincoln National expects its RBC ratio to remain above the 420% target, reflecting solid capitalization to fund growth initiatives while maintaining financial strength.
Key Concern
Lincoln National has relatively higher financial leverage compared to the industry, with a total debt-to-capital of around 38.4%, significantly above the industry average of 15.2%. This elevated leverage may increase financial risk, particularly amid volatile market conditions.
LNC is currently trading at 0.78X trailing 12-month price-to-book, below its three-year median of 0.79X and the industry average of 2.17X, reflecting lingering investor skepticism.
Key Picks
Some better-ranked stocks in the broader finance space are Alerus Financial Corporation ALRS, Pelagos Insurance Capital Ltd. PLGO and Cboe Global Markets, Inc. CBOE, each sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Alerus Financial’s current-year earnings of $2.95 per share has witnessed two upward revisions in the past 60 days against none in the opposite direction. ALRS’ earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 35.8%. The consensus estimate for current-year revenues is pegged at $306.2 million, suggesting a 3.8% year-over-year jump.
The consensus estimate for Pelagos Insurance Capital’s current-year earnings is pegged at $3.78 per share, which signals 96.9% year-over-year growth. Its earnings beat estimates in three of the trailing four quarters and missed once, with the average surprise being 53.6%. The consensus mark for PLGO’s current-year revenues of $2.8 billion implies 11.4% year-over-year growth.
The consensus estimate for Cboe Global Markets’ current-year earnings is pegged at $13.34 per share, which has witnessed two upward revisions in the past 30 days against none in the opposite direction. Its earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, with the average surprise being 5.4%. The consensus estimate for CBOE’s current-year revenues is pegged at $2.8 billion, which implies a 13.1% year-over-year rise.
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Lincoln National Corporation (LNC): Free Stock Analysis Report
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Pelagos Insurance Capital Limited (PLGO): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).