LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) CFO Sells $10,507,633.78 in Stock

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total transaction of $10,507,633.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 13,663 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,988,907.82. This trade represents a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

LPL Financial Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ LPLA opened at $369.14 on Friday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.19 and a twelve month high of $375.84. The stock has a market cap of $27.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The company’s fifty day moving average is $338.85 and its 200-day moving average is $277.76.

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

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on LPLA. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. TD Cowen upgraded LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $277.00 to $413.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $379.17.

Institutional Trading of LPL Financial

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wealth Alliance boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,483 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $484,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Sanchez Wealth Management Group lifted its position in LPL Financial by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Sanchez Wealth Management Group now owns 1,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $551,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. raised its holdings in LPL Financial by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 916 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in LPL Financial by 3.2% during the third quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,185 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $276,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in LPL Financial by 1.8% during the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,416 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $562,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About LPL Financial

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.