Jennison Associates LLC Grows Position in Lincoln National Corporation $LNC

Jennison Associates LLC increased its position in Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC) by 58.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,681,158 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,361,835 shares during the quarter. Jennison Associates LLC’s holdings in Lincoln National were worth $163,922,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 6.3% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,903,720 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $802,717,000 after purchasing an additional 1,183,934 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 145.5% in the third quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 116,116 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,683,000 after acquiring an additional 68,827 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 30.3% in the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 203,931 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,180,000 after acquiring an additional 47,419 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 21.1% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,952,166 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $240,051,000 after acquiring an additional 1,035,505 shares during the period. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 101.9% in the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 285,105 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,498,000 after acquiring an additional 143,862 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.81% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln National Stock Performance

NYSE LNC opened at $37.56 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $7.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $35.33 and a 200-day moving average price of $39.57. Lincoln National Corporation has a twelve month low of $31.61 and a twelve month high of $46.82.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.86 by $0.35. The firm had revenue of $4.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.85 billion. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 18.52% and a net margin of 6.46%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.91 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Lincoln National Corporation will post 7.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln National Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.8%. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio is 33.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LNC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Mizuho cut their price objective on Lincoln National from $54.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 13th. National Bank Financial set a $48.00 price target on Lincoln National in a report on Monday, April 13th. TD Cowen cut their price target on Lincoln National from $43.00 to $38.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 9th. Barclays cut their price target on Lincoln National from $44.00 to $42.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a “moderate buy” rating and set a $43.00 price target on shares of Lincoln National in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $43.79.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln National

In other news, EVP Sean Woodroffe sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.46, for a total value of $344,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 206,159 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,104,239.14. This represents a 4.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP James Waltman Reid sold 3,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.81, for a total value of $127,520.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 118,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,957,286.27. This trade represents a 2.51% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 21,050 shares of company stock valued at $734,041 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

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.