Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Makes New $2.66 Million Investment in Lincoln National Corporation $LNC

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 75,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,662,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LNC. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Lincoln National by 5.3% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,964 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $212,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln National during the first quarter worth $387,000. Evolve Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 270.4% in the 1st quarter. Evolve Private Wealth LLC now owns 18,845 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $669,000 after acquiring an additional 13,757 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its holdings in Lincoln National by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,360,587 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $60,495,000 after purchasing an additional 133,388 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in Lincoln National by 66.0% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 6,181 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $275,000 after acquiring an additional 2,458 shares in the last quarter. 72.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Lincoln National news, EVP Craigt T. Beazer sold 30,000 shares of Lincoln National stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $3,579,561.70. The trade was a 22.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.03% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln National Price Performance

Lincoln National stock opened at $36.66 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.25, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. Lincoln National Corporation has a 52-week low of $32.18 and a 52-week high of $46.82. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $36.10 and a 200-day moving average of $38.26.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 18.07% and a net margin of 9.17%.Lincoln National’s quarterly revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.60 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Lincoln National Corporation will post 7.72 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln National Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 10th. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio is 20.88%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LNC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America cut their target price on Lincoln National from $41.00 to $37.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $42.00 to $40.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Lincoln National from $44.00 to $42.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. National Bank Financial set a $40.00 target price on shares of Lincoln National in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Lincoln National from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $43.00.

Lincoln National Company Profile

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.