First Trust Advisors LP Increases Stake in Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC)

First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC) by 53.1% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,258,512 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 436,462 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in Lincoln National were worth $39,907,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Lincoln National in the third quarter valued at $535,000. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Lincoln National by 89.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 95,677 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,149,000 after purchasing an additional 45,086 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Lincoln National by 7.2% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,309,453 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $104,281,000 after purchasing an additional 223,129 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Lincoln National by 20.2% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,104 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Lincoln National by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,696 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $212,000 after buying an additional 556 shares in the last quarter. 72.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lincoln National Stock Up 3.4 %

Shares of NYSE:LNC opened at $31.90 on Friday. Lincoln National Co. has a 52-week low of $25.80 and a 52-week high of $39.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The business has a fifty day moving average of $34.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $34.01. The stock has a market cap of $5.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 1.74, a PEG ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.56.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.04. Lincoln National had a net margin of 17.76% and a return on equity of 18.47%. On average, research analysts expect that Lincoln National Co. will post 7.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln National Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.64%. Lincoln National’s payout ratio is 9.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $42.00 to $32.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $36.00 to $31.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Lincoln National from $36.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lincoln National currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $35.91.

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.