Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Has $150.10 Million Stock Position in Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC) by 4.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,763,703 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 193,025 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 2.80% of Lincoln National worth $150,104,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Whittier Trust Co. increased its holdings in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Adirondack Trust Co. acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln National in the second quarter valued at $31,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in shares of Lincoln National by 535.5% in 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. Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln National during the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lincoln National during the 1st quarter worth about $45,000. Institutional investors own 72.81% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln National Stock Performance

NYSE LNC opened at $35.34 on Friday. Lincoln National Co. has a 1 year low of $23.40 and a 1 year high of $36.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.24, a P/E/G ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 1.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $32.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $31.85.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.64 by $0.42. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 18.15% and a net margin of 2.51%. The company had revenue of $4.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.61 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.23 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Lincoln National Co. will post 6.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln National Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.09%. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 128.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on LNC. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of Lincoln National in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $34.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded Lincoln National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Barclays boosted their price target on Lincoln National from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Lincoln National from $30.00 to $29.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $28.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $33.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP John Christopher Kennedy sold 2,863 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was 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 directly owns 99,644 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,587,184. This represents a 2.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.54% of the stock is currently 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.