LSV Asset Management Sells 41,803 Shares of Lincoln National Corporation $LNC

Key Points

• LSV Asset Management trimmed its Lincoln National stake by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 41,803 shares while still holding 2.57 million shares worth about $114.6 million.
• Several analysts cut price targets on Lincoln National, with the stock now carrying a consensus Hold rating and an average target price of $43.00.
• Lincoln National reported better-than-expected earnings for the quarter, posting $1.66 EPS versus the $1.58 estimate, even as revenue came in slightly below expectations.

LSV Asset Management lessened its position in shares of Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC - Free Report) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,572,936 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 41,803 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management owned 1.35% of Lincoln National worth $114,573,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Lincoln National during the third quarter worth $29,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Lincoln National during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Lincoln National during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Lincoln National by 61.8% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,024 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 391 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in Lincoln National during the third quarter worth $48,000. Institutional investors own 72.81% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Sean Woodroffe sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.46, for a total transaction of $344,600.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 206,159 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,104,239.14. The trade was a 4.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder National Life Insuranc Lincoln purchased 2,254,486 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $11.09 per share, for a total transaction of $25,002,249.74. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 9,784,322 shares of the company's stock, valued at $108,508,130.98. The trade was a 29.94% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 1.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on LNC. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $43.00 to $38.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $44.00 to $42.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $41.00 to $37.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $54.00 to $48.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $42.00 to $40.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $43.00.

Lincoln National Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE:LNC opened at $36.05 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.25 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $35.37 and a 200-day moving average of $39.13. The company has a market cap of $6.89 billion, a PE ratio of 4.18, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.20. Lincoln National Corporation has a one year low of $31.61 and a one year high of $46.82.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.08. Lincoln National had a net margin of 9.17% and a return on equity of 18.07%. The company had revenue of $4.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.60 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 13.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Lincoln National Corporation will post 7.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Lincoln National

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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