First Trust Advisors LP Decreases Stock Position in Lincoln National Corporation $LNC

First Trust Advisors LP cut its stake in shares of Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC) by 55.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,128,355 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,656,015 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned 1.11% of Lincoln National worth $75,557,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of LNC. Bain Capital Prairie LLC purchased a new position in Lincoln National in the 4th quarter worth approximately $835,360,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 24.4% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,755,506 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $275,304,000 after purchasing an additional 1,522,179 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 0.7% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,199,526 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $214,504,000 after purchasing an additional 40,676 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 3.9% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,823,152 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $135,722,000 after buying an additional 141,994 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,959,195 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $131,801,000 after buying an additional 14,842 shares during the period. 72.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lincoln National Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of Lincoln National stock opened at $41.32 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Lincoln National Corporation has a 12-month low of $32.18 and a 12-month high of $46.82. The company has a market cap of $7.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.79, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 1.17. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $37.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $37.51.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $4.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.93 billion. Lincoln National had a net margin of 9.17% and a return on equity of 18.07%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.60 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Lincoln National Corporation will post 7.73 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.88%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Lincoln National from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Lincoln National from $37.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Barclays raised Lincoln National from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $42.00 to $45.00 in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lincoln National presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $45.21.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Craigt T. Beazer sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.45, for a total value of $1,033,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 103,906 shares in the company, valued at $3,579,561.70. This trade represents a 22.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Lincoln National

Lincoln National Corporation, doing business as Lincoln Financial Group, is a diversified financial services holding company focused on providing retirement, insurance, and wealth management solutions in the United States and select international markets. Headquartered in Radnor, Pennsylvania, the company operates through several business segments, including Retirement Plan Services, Life Insurance, and Group Protection. Its offerings are designed to help individuals, families, and institutions plan and prepare for their financial futures.

The Retirement Plan Services segment delivers recordkeeping, administrative services, and investment management for defined contribution and defined benefit plans.