UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Decreases Position in Lincoln National Corporation $LNC

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC trimmed its position in Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC) by 10.8% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 451,306 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 54,912 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC’s holdings in Lincoln National were worth $15,954,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bain Capital Prairie LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln National in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $835,360,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Lincoln National in the 4th quarter valued at $101,114,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in Lincoln National in the 2nd quarter valued at $63,112,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in Lincoln National by 24.4% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,755,506 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $275,304,000 after purchasing an additional 1,522,179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in Lincoln National in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,831,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.81% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Sean Woodroffe sold 11,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.28, for a total value of $498,080.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 119,947 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,431,200.16. This represents a 8.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Gary C. Kelly sold 15,007 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.50, for a total value of $397,685.50. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 1.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on LNC shares. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. National Bank Financial set a $50.00 price target on shares of Lincoln National in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Lincoln National from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $47.00 price objective on shares of Lincoln National in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lincoln National has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $47.07.

Lincoln National Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of LNC opened at $45.42 on Friday. Lincoln National Corporation has a 52-week low of $32.18 and a 52-week high of $47.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $42.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.09. The company has a market capitalization of $8.70 billion, a PE ratio of 3.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.12.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.28. Lincoln National had a net margin of 12.21% and a return on equity of 17.35%. The firm had revenue of $4.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.36 earnings per share. Lincoln National’s quarterly revenue was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Lincoln National Corporation will post 7.97 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 12th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 9th. Lincoln National’s payout ratio is presently 15.60%.

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.