23,051 Shares of Lincoln National Corporation $LNC Purchased by Gratus Wealth Advisors LLC

Gratus Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE:LNC) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 23,051 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $928,000.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Apollon Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln National by 4.5% in the third quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,326 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $255,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the period. Hedeker Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lincoln National by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter. Hedeker Wealth LLC now owns 96,978 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,904,000 after acquiring an additional 9,280 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI purchased a new stake in Lincoln National during the 3rd quarter valued at about $229,000. Kendall Capital Management boosted its holdings in Lincoln National by 29.4% during the 3rd quarter. Kendall Capital Management now owns 33,280 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,340,000 after acquiring an additional 7,560 shares during the period. Finally, Tectonic Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Lincoln National during the 3rd quarter valued at about $363,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.81% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lincoln National news, EVP Sean Woodroffe sold 11,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.28, for a total transaction of $498,080.00. Following the completion of 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gary Kelly sold 15,007 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on LNC shares. Barclays raised their price target on Lincoln National from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. National Bank Financial set a $49.00 price objective on Lincoln National in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Lincoln National from $49.00 to $47.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Lincoln National from $37.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Lincoln National from $50.00 to $47.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 5th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lincoln National presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.67.

Lincoln National Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:LNC opened at $40.18 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $7.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $41.95 and a 200-day moving average price of $39.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. Lincoln National Corporation has a 12 month low of $32.18 and a 12 month high of $47.67.

Lincoln National (NYSE:LNC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $2.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $4.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.89 billion. Lincoln National had a net margin of 12.21% and a return on equity of 17.35%. Lincoln National’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.36 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Lincoln National Corporation will post 7.94 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln National Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 12th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 9th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. Lincoln National’s dividend payout ratio is presently 15.60%.

Lincoln National Profile

Lincoln National Corporation, operating under the Lincoln Financial Group brand, is a financial services company that provides insurance and retirement products primarily in the United States. Its businesses are designed to help individuals, employers and institutions manage financial protection, income and long-term savings needs.

The company offers life insurance and annuities, including products intended to provide death-benefit protection, retirement income and asset accumulation. Through its group protection business, Lincoln also provides employer-sponsored disability, dental, vision and leave-management solutions, as well as related workplace benefits and services.

Lincoln traces its history to the founding of The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company in Fort Wayne, Indiana, in 1905.