Pzena Investment Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Pzena Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 7.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,187 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 90 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $270,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new position in LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Smithfield Trust Co raised its position in shares of LPL Financial by 164.4% during the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 119 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, American National Bank bought a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of LPL Financial stock traded up $3.31 during trading on Thursday, hitting $275.98. 124,735 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 524,183. The firm has a market cap of $20.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $190.13 and a 52-week high of $277.05. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $265.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $247.45.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.21 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.77 by $0.44. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 55.22% and a net margin of 9.71%. The firm had revenue of $2.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.68 billion. On average, equities analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 15.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 20th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.43%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 34,807 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.54, for a total value of $9,277,457.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 141,810 shares in the company, valued at $37,798,037.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other LPL Financial news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 34,807 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.54, for a total value of $9,277,457.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 141,810 shares in the company, valued at $37,798,037.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 7,089 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $265.66, for a total value of $1,883,263.74. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 133,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,377,676.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 48,770 shares of company stock worth $12,992,754 over the last quarter. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LPLA. Morgan Stanley upgraded LPL Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $254.00 to $315.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Barclays raised their price target on LPL Financial from $302.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Raymond James initiated coverage on LPL Financial in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. They issued an “underperform” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on LPL Financial from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $305.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $276.20.

LPL Financial 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.