Berger Financial Group Inc Raises Position in Lincoln National Corporation $LNC

Berger Financial Group Inc boosted its position in Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC - Free Report) by 302.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 29,283 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 22,000 shares during the period. Berger Financial Group Inc's holdings in Lincoln National were worth $1,013,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hollencrest Capital Management raised its stake in Lincoln National by 383.2% in the 1st quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 749 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 594 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lincoln National in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln National during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its stake in Lincoln National by 82.9% in the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,156 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional raised its holdings in Lincoln National by 354.2% during the 2nd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 1,685 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 1,314 shares during the period. 72.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LNC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen raised Lincoln National from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Lincoln National in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. National Bankshares set a $41.00 price target on Lincoln National in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Lincoln National from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, September 19th. Finally, Cfra Research upgraded shares of Lincoln National to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $39.45.

Lincoln National Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of Lincoln National stock opened at $41.09 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.26 and a quick ratio of 0.26. Lincoln National Corporation has a 1 year low of $27.58 and a 1 year high of $43.66. The firm has a market cap of $7.79 billion, a PE ratio of 7.17, a PEG ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $40.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $35.78.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.45. Lincoln National had a net margin of 6.34% and a return on equity of 19.14%. The firm had revenue of $4.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.65 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.87 EPS. Analysts expect that Lincoln National Corporation will post 7.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.4%. Lincoln National's payout ratio is 31.41%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John Christopher Kennedy sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.29, for a total transaction of $196,450.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 123,815 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,864,691.35. This represents a 3.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

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.

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