Norges Bank Acquires Shares of 2,270,699 Lincoln National Corporation $LNC

Key Points

• Norges Bank disclosed a new stake in Lincoln National, buying 2.27 million shares worth about $101.1 million and ending the quarter with 1.20% ownership.
• Lincoln National reported Q1 earnings of $1.66 per share, topping estimates, while revenue came in slightly below expectations at $4.87 billion. Revenue still rose 13.1% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.45 per share, implying an annualized yield of about 5.2%. Meanwhile, analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with an average target price of $43.

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 2,270,699 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $101,114,000. Norges Bank owned 1.20% of Lincoln National at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Baird Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Lincoln National during the first quarter valued at $241,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 30.9% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 71,981 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,585,000 after acquiring an additional 16,991 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 316.9% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 59,115 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,123,000 after acquiring an additional 44,936 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 5.0% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 623,322 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $22,383,000 after acquiring an additional 29,421 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 39.1% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 19,530 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $701,000 after acquiring an additional 5,486 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.81% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on LNC. Mizuho reduced their price target on Lincoln National from $54.00 to $48.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 13th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $39.00 price target on shares of Lincoln National in a report on Thursday, May 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Lincoln National from $42.00 to $40.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Bank of America reduced their price target on Lincoln National from $41.00 to $37.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Lincoln National from $43.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lincoln National currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $43.00.

Lincoln National Price Performance

NYSE LNC opened at $34.75 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $6.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.03, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.25. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $35.56 and a 200 day moving average of $38.71. Lincoln National Corporation has a one year low of $31.69 and a one year high of $46.82.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $4.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.93 billion. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 18.07% and a net margin of 9.17%.The company's revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.60 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Lincoln National Corporation will post 7.72 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln National Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 10th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 10th. Lincoln National's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.88%.

Insider Transactions at Lincoln National

In other Lincoln National news, EVP Sean Woodroffe sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.74, for a total value of $261,920.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 198,159 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,487,725.66. This trade represents a 3.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.03% of the company's stock.

Lincoln National Company 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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