Keynote Financial Services LLC Sells 1,625 Shares of Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC)

Keynote Financial Services LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Lincoln National Co. (NYSE:LNC) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 31,866 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,625 shares during the quarter. Keynote Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Lincoln National were worth $1,010,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Versor Investments LP lifted its position in Lincoln National by 190.9% during the fourth quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 23,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $758,000 after purchasing an additional 15,684 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lincoln National during the 4th quarter worth $1,050,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its position in Lincoln National by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 164,071 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,203,000 after acquiring an additional 21,192 shares in the last quarter. Forvis Mazars Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Lincoln National by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Forvis Mazars Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,199 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $355,000 after acquiring an additional 338 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Lincoln National during the fourth quarter valued at about $666,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.81% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln National Price Performance

LNC stock opened at $39.00 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.12, a PEG ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.79. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $34.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $33.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. Lincoln National Co. has a 12-month low of $25.60 and a 12-month high of $39.85.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $1.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.04. Lincoln National had a return on equity of 18.47% and a net margin of 17.76%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Lincoln National Co. will post 7.69 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln National Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.62%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Lincoln National’s payout ratio is 9.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on LNC. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Lincoln National from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Lincoln National from $28.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of Lincoln National from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $39.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lincoln National from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $37.40.

About Lincoln National

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.