Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC) Shares Sold by SYM FINANCIAL Corp

SYM FINANCIAL Corp decreased its holdings in shares of Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC) by 11.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 6,754 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 846 shares during the quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp’s holdings in Lincoln National were worth $214,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LNC. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 535.5% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,074 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 905 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its position in Lincoln National by 95.3% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,086 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 530 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in Lincoln National in the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Lincoln National during the 3rd quarter worth $48,000. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln National in the fourth quarter valued at about $51,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.81% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Lincoln National

In other news, EVP John Christopher Kennedy sold 2,863 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.00, for a total transaction of $103,068.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 99,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,587,184. This represents a 2.79 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. StockNews.com upgraded Lincoln National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Lincoln National from $29.00 to $28.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on Lincoln National from $38.00 to $36.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $33.40.

Lincoln National Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LNC opened at $35.18 on Monday. Lincoln National Co. has a one year low of $25.09 and a one year high of $36.98. The stock has a market cap of $5.99 billion, a PE ratio of 25.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.27 and a beta of 1.78. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $33.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.64 by $0.42. The firm had revenue of $4.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.61 billion. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 18.15% and a net margin of 2.51%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.23 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Lincoln National Co. will post 6.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio is presently 128.57%.

About Lincoln National

Lincoln National Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates multiple insurance and retirement businesses in the United States. It operates in four segments: Life Insurance, Annuities, Group Protection, and Retirement Plan Services. The Life Insurance segment provides life insurance products, including term insurance, universal life insurance (UL), indexed universal life insurance, variable universal life insurance (VUL), linked-benefit UL and VUL products, and critical illness and long-term care riders.