The 16% YoY growth in adjusted operating income, coupled with a revenue beat and improving segment trends (Life Insurance profitability, Group Protection records), suggests the turnaround is gaining traction. Traders should watch for continued improvement in Annuities (spread-based shift) and any reduction in GAAP volatility to confirm the upward trajectory.
Price Chart
Executive Summary
Lincoln National reported Q1 2026 adjusted operating income of $326M ($1.66/share), up 16% YoY, with revenues of $5.31B beating consensus of $4.92B. GAAP net loss improved to $(172)M from $(722)M a year ago, driven by non-economic market risk benefit impacts. Life Insurance turned profitable, Group Protection and Retirement Plan Services posted double-digit earnings growth, while Annuities declined 5% but was flat after adjusting for items.
Key Financial Metrics
Key Facts
- Adjusted operating income available to common stockholders rose 16.4% YoY to $326M
- Total revenues of $5.31B beat consensus of $4.92B by 7.8%
- GAAP net loss narrowed to $(172)M from $(722)M in prior-year quarter
- Life Insurance swung to operating income of $41M from a $(16)M loss
- Group Protection operating income up 11% to $112M, record first quarter
- Retirement Plan Services earnings up 26% to $43M
- Annuities operating income down 5% to $275M, but flat after adjusting for NII allocation and tax items
- Leverage ratio improved to 25.0% from 27.5% a year ago
- RBC ratio stable at 420%
- Holding company available liquidity increased to $805M net of prefunding
Financial Impact
Adjusted operating EPS of $1.66 vs $1.60 prior year; revenue beat consensus by $386M
Risk Factors
- GAAP net loss persists due to market risk benefit volatility, which may spook income-focused investors
- Annuities net outflows worsened to $2.2B from $1.7B, potentially pressuring fee income
- Alternative investment income contributed $19M above target, which may not repeat
- Legal accruals of $122M in 'Other items' could signal lingering litigation exposure
Market Snapshot
Investment Themes
Documents Analyzed
This report is based on 8 SEC documents filed with EDGAR.
| Document | Accession Number |
|---|---|
| 8-K Filing (Primary) | 0000059558-26-000031 |
| Document: a1q2026lncearningspr.htm | 0000059558-26-000031 |
| Document: a1q2026investorsupplemen.htm | 0000059558-26-000031 |
| Document: lnc-20260507.htm | 0000059558-26-000031 |
| Document: 0000059558-26-000031-index-headers.html | 0000059558-26-000031 |
| Document: 0000059558-26-000031-index.html | 0000059558-26-000031 |
| Document: 0000059558-26-000031.txt | 0000059558-26-000031 |
| 8-K Data (Synthetic) | 0000059558-26-000031 |
Track record builds as more directional reports settle.
Filters
| Type | Now | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Aug 18, 2026 6w ago | Insider Cluster | $45.08 $42.45 | ▼ −5.83% | ▼ −4.52% | $39.92 (−11.45%) |
Aug 10, 2026 7w ago | 8-K | $45.68 $43.32 | ▼ −5.17% | ▼ −4.25% | $39.92 (−12.61%) |
Jun 29, 2026 13w ago | 8-K | $35.35 $41.20 | ▲ +16.55% | ▲ +17.58% | $39.92 (+12.93%) |
Jun 10, 2026 16w ago | Court Ruling | $36.21 $39.50 | ▲ +9.09% | ▲ +5.46% | $39.92 (+10.25%) |
May 7, 2026 21w ago | 8-K | $26.70 $26.44 | ▼ −0.97% | ▼ −4.10% | $39.92 (+49.52%) |
Apr 16, 2026 24w ago | 8-K | $26.32 $26.02 | ▼ −1.15% | ▼ −6.52% | $39.92 (+51.67%) |
Apr 16, 2026 24w ago | DEFA14A | $26.35 $26.61 | ▲ +0.99% | ▼ −4.83% | $39.92 (+51.50%) |
Mar 9, 2026 29w ago | Insider Cluster | $33.89 $34.79 | ▲ +2.66% | ▲ +5.46% | $39.92 (+17.81%) |
Mar 2, 2026 30w ago | EFFECT | $34.48 $34.07 | ▼ −1.19% | ▲ +6.75% | $39.92 (+15.79%) |
US Market Status
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