GSG Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in Lincoln National Corporation $LNC

Key Points

• GSG Advisors LLC invested approximately $496,000 in Lincoln National Corporation by acquiring 15,036 shares in the first quarter, indicating growing institutional interest in the company.
• Lincoln National reported earnings of $2.36 per share, exceeding expectations by $0.45, but fell short on revenue with $4.04 billion compared to the anticipated $4.65 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share, yielding an annualized dividend of 4.4%, with the payout scheduled for November 3rd.

GSG Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 15,036 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $496,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Hollencrest Capital Management increased its position in shares of Lincoln National by 383.2% during the first quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 749 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 594 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln National during the first quarter valued at about $33,000. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln National during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its position in shares of Lincoln National by 82.9% during the first 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 during the period. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln National during the first quarter valued at about $66,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.81% of the company's stock.

Lincoln National Stock Performance

Lincoln National stock traded up $1.2640 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $41.9140. 1,868,723 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,244,095. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.42. The business has a 50 day moving average of $35.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $34.90. Lincoln National Corporation has a 12 month low of $27.58 and a 12 month high of $42.36. 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 (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.36 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.91 by $0.45. The company had revenue of $4.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.65 billion. Lincoln National had a net margin of 6.34% and a return on equity of 19.14%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.87 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Lincoln National Corporation will post 7.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.3%. Lincoln National's dividend payout ratio is 31.41%.

Insider Activity at Lincoln National

In related news, EVP Sean Woodroffe sold 43,622 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.78, for a total transaction of $1,429,929.16. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 154,102 shares in the company, valued at $5,051,463.56. This represents a 22.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP John Christopher Kennedy sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.29, for a total transaction of $196,450.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 123,815 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,864,691.35. This trade represents a 3.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 58,697 shares of company stock worth $1,959,862 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on LNC. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Lincoln National from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Wells Fargo & Company restated a "positive" rating on shares of Lincoln National in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Lincoln National from $38.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Cfra Research upgraded shares of Lincoln National to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $39.70.

Lincoln National Company Profile

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.