JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 210,901 Shares of Lincoln National Corporation $LNC

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. sold 210,901 shares of Lincoln National in Q3, cutting its stake by 50.5%; it now holds 207,129 shares (about 0.11% of the company) valued at roughly $8.35 million.
• Other institutional moves were mixed: Vanguard increased its position to 19.9 million shares, while major shareholder National Life Insurance bought 2,254,486 shares (a 29.94% increase), leaving institutions owning 72.81% of the stock.
• Lincoln National recently beat quarterly EPS estimates ($2.21 vs. $1.86), pays a quarterly dividend of $0.45 (a 5.3% yield), trades at a PE of 6.44, and has an average analyst target of $45.38 with a consensus "Hold" rating.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut its holdings in shares of Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC - Free Report) by 50.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 207,129 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 210,901 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned about 0.11% of Lincoln National worth $8,354,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Lincoln National by 6.3% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,903,720 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $802,717,000 after buying an additional 1,183,934 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Lincoln National by 145.5% in the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 116,116 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,683,000 after acquiring an additional 68,827 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Lincoln National by 30.3% in the 3rd 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. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Lincoln National by 101.9% in the 3rd 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. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 21.1% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 5,952,166 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $240,051,000 after purchasing an additional 1,035,505 shares in the last quarter. 72.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Lincoln National Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE LNC opened at $34.20 on Monday. Lincoln National Corporation has a 52-week low of $27.58 and a 52-week high of $46.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27. The business has a fifty day moving average of $37.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $40.30. The stock has a market cap of $6.50 billion, a PE ratio of 6.44, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.30.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The financial services provider reported $2.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.86 by $0.35. Lincoln National had a net margin of 6.46% and a return on equity of 18.52%. The business had revenue of $4.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.91 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.3%. Lincoln National's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on LNC. National Bank Financial set a $45.00 target price on Lincoln National in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Lincoln National from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $41.00 to $48.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $43.00 to $38.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 9th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Lincoln National from $45.00 to $44.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Lincoln National from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $45.38.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP James Waltman Reid sold 3,050 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.81, for a total transaction of $127,520.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 118,567 shares in the company, valued at $4,957,286.27. This represents a 2.51% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, major shareholder National Life Insuranc Lincoln purchased 2,254,486 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $11.09 per share, with a total value of $25,002,249.74. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider directly owned 9,784,322 shares in the company, valued at approximately $108,508,130.98. This represents a 29.94% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,050 shares of company stock worth $734,041. Insiders own 0.51% of the company's stock.

Lincoln National Profile

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.

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