LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) CFO Matthew J. Audette Sells 28,777 Shares of Stock

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total value of $10,507,633.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 13,663 shares in the company, valued at $4,988,907.82. The trade was a 67.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

LPL Financial Stock Down 0.5 %

NASDAQ LPLA opened at $369.14 on Friday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $187.19 and a 1-year high of $375.84. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $338.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $277.76. The company has a market capitalization of $27.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.29, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.87.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.01 by $0.24. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.41% and a net margin of 8.55%. Equities analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is 8.55%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LPL Financial

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. Creative Planning raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 14.7% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 4,574 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,278,000 after acquiring an additional 586 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in LPL Financial by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 14,439 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,033,000 after purchasing an additional 805 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in LPL Financial by 15.1% in the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 5,578 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,298,000 after purchasing an additional 732 shares in the last quarter. Tobam grew its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 51.5% during the third quarter. Tobam now owns 42,074 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,788,000 after purchasing an additional 14,307 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LVW Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 13.9% in the third quarter. LVW Advisors LLC now owns 4,088 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $951,000 after buying an additional 499 shares in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on LPLA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $271.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $435.00 price objective on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $379.17.

LPL Financial Company Profile

LPL Financial Holdings Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides an integrated platform of brokerage and investment advisory services to independent financial advisors and financial advisors at enterprises in the United States. Its brokerage offerings include variable and fixed annuities, mutual funds, equities, fixed income, alternative investments, retirement and 529 education savings plans, and insurance.