Benjamin Edwards Inc. Invests $1.12 Million in Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. acquired a new stake in Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 35,474 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,118,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its position in Lincoln National by 106.7% during the 2nd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 835 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 535.5% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,074 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 905 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Lincoln National by 95.3% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,086 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 530 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln National in the third quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Lincoln National during the 3rd quarter valued at $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.81% of the company's stock.

Lincoln National Stock Performance

Shares of Lincoln National stock traded down $0.54 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $34.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,305,565 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,054,259. Lincoln National Co. has a one year low of $23.78 and a one year high of $36.98. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $33.74 and its 200 day simple moving average is $32.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 0.27. The stock has a market cap of $5.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 1.77.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.64 by $0.42. The firm had revenue of $4.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.61 billion. Lincoln National had a net margin of 2.51% and a return on equity of 18.15%. Lincoln National's revenue was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.23 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Lincoln National Co. will post 6.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.25%. Lincoln National's payout ratio is currently 128.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LNC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Lincoln National from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Lincoln National from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Lincoln National from $37.00 to $34.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded Lincoln National from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $33.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lincoln National news, EVP John Christopher Kennedy sold 2,863 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.00, for a total value of $103,068.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 99,644 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,587,184. This represents a 2.79 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.