WINTON GROUP Ltd Invests $1.66 Million in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA

WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm bought 4,428 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,660,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in LPL Financial in the first quarter valued at $26,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 116.2% in the 2nd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 80 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Maseco LLP acquired a new stake in LPL Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd bought a new position in LPL Financial during the second quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Smithfield Trust Co increased its position in LPL Financial by 29.4% during the second quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 154 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $58,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Citizens Jmp increased their price target on LPL Financial from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $421.00 price objective on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Friday, October 31st. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $356.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $463.00 to $438.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of LPL Financial from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $429.00.

LPL Financial Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of NASDAQ LPLA opened at $374.71 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.50, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.60. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $348.97 and its 200 day moving average is $360.55. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $262.83 and a 52 week high of $403.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 2.60 and a current ratio of 2.60.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $5.20 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.49 by $0.71. The firm had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.08 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 5.35% and a return on equity of 36.80%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 46.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.16 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 13th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 13th. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is currently 11.05%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other LPL Financial news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 80 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $352.48, for a total value of $28,198.40. Following the sale, the director owned 5,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,939,344.96. This trade represents a 1.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Greg Gates sold 750 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $370.97, for a total value of $278,227.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 14,620 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,423,581.40. The trade was a 4.88% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 8,138 shares of company stock worth $2,983,353 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

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.