Lincoln National Corporation $LNC Shares Acquired by Bank of America Corp DE

Key Points

• Bank of America increased its Lincoln National stake by 11.5% during the second quarter, purchasing 163,969 additional shares to hold 1.59 million shares worth approximately $56.3 million. Institutional investors collectively own 72.81% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: seven analysts rate LNC a Buy, six a Hold and one a Sell, resulting in a consensus Hold rating and an average price target of $47.85.
• Lincoln National exceeded quarterly earnings expectations with $2.24 in EPS versus $1.96 forecast and revenue of $4.93 billion. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share, representing a 4.3% annualized yield.

Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC - Free Report) by 11.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,592,814 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 163,969 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 0.83% of Lincoln National worth $56,306,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Kendall Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln National in the 2nd quarter valued at $909,000. Trust Co. of Vermont acquired a new position in Lincoln National in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Lincoln National in the second quarter valued at $63,112,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in Lincoln National by 1.5% in the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 52,500 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,856,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 1.5% during the second quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 30,999 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,096,000 after purchasing an additional 454 shares during the last quarter. 72.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on LNC. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Lincoln National from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Lincoln National from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. TD Cowen raised their price target on Lincoln National from $37.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings raised Lincoln National from a "hold (c)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Lincoln National from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lincoln National presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $47.85.

Insider Activity

In other Lincoln National news, EVP Sean Woodroffe sold 11,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.28, for a total transaction of $498,080.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 119,947 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,431,200.16. The trade was a 8.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Gary C. Kelly sold 15,007 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.50, for a total value of $397,685.50. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.03% of the company's stock.

Lincoln National Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of LNC stock opened at $42.15 on Monday. The business's 50 day moving average is $43.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.48. Lincoln National Corporation has a twelve month low of $32.18 and a twelve month high of $47.67. The company has a market capitalization of $8.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.24 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $4.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.89 billion. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 17.35% and a net margin of 12.21%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 12.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.36 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Lincoln National Corporation will post 8.02 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln National Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, October 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 9th. Lincoln National's dividend payout ratio is currently 15.60%.

About Lincoln National

Lincoln National Corporation, operating under the Lincoln Financial Group brand, is a financial services company that provides insurance and retirement solutions primarily in the United States. Its businesses are designed to help individuals, employers and institutions manage income protection, long-term financial planning and retirement needs.

The company offers life insurance, annuities and group protection products. Its group protection business includes employer-sponsored life, disability and dental insurance, while its retirement business provides products and services intended to support workplace retirement plans and individual retirement income strategies.

Lincoln traces its origins to the founding of The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company in 1905 and takes its name from President Abraham Lincoln.

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