Lincoln National Surges On Benzinga's Report

Lincoln National Corp. LNC was the best performing stock in the S&P 500 on Friday on speculation that the company may have received a $32 per share offer from Toronto-based Manulife Financial Corp. MFC. According to a BusinessWeek article, this was LNC's biggest gain in three months. Benzinga reported on the possible acquisition on Friday morning. The buying strength was sustained throughout the day, with LNC finishing near its highs. For the session, the stock climbed 10.27% to $23.73. The shares have added another 1.22% to $24.02 in Friday's after hours session. These rumors have not been confirmed. According to Daniel Theriault, an analyst at Portales Partners, “Lincoln got hurt pretty badly in 2008 and there were rumors they might be on the block," but “Manulife had its own issues from a balance-sheet perspective and I would be surprised they would be on the offensive this soon.”