South Dakota Investment Council Sells 4,600 Shares of Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC)

South Dakota Investment Council cut its holdings in Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 100,536 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,600 shares during the period. South Dakota Investment Council owned approximately 0.06% of Lincoln National worth $2,711,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in LNC. National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in shares of Lincoln National by 46.4% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 38,312 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $928,000 after acquiring an additional 12,143 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 787.2% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 4,436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $110,000 after buying an additional 3,936 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 1,313.0% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 76,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,886,000 after buying an additional 70,966 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 452.1% in the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 105,577 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,606,000 after buying an additional 86,454 shares during the period. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln National in the 3rd quarter valued at about $337,000. 72.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Lincoln National Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:LNC opened at $28.64 on Thursday. Lincoln National Co. has a 52-week low of $18.50 and a 52-week high of $32.43. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $28.41 and a 200 day moving average of $26.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The financial services provider reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.13. Lincoln National had a negative net margin of 6.46% and a positive return on equity of 20.81%. The company had revenue of $1.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.44 billion. Sell-side analysts forecast that Lincoln National Co. will post 6.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.29%. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -36.07%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LNC has been the subject of several research reports. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Lincoln National from an “underperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Lincoln National from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. TheStreet downgraded Lincoln National from a “c” rating to a “d+” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Lincoln National from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Lincoln National from $29.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lincoln National currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $28.45.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Owen Ryan acquired 10,000 shares of Lincoln National stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $25.90 per share, with a total value of $259,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $259,000. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln National Company Profile

Lincoln National Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates multiple insurance and retirement businesses in the United States. It operates in four segments: Life Insurance, Annuities, Group Protection, and Retirement Plan Services. The Life Insurance segment provides life insurance products, including term insurance, universal life insurance (UL), indexed universal life insurance, variable universal life insurance (VUL), linked-benefit UL and VUL products, and critical illness and long-term care riders.