LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Shares Sold by BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S lessened its stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 11.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,818 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 246 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $480,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. DGS Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 2.8% in the first quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 1,625 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $429,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC increased its position in LPL Financial by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC now owns 8,152 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,856,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. CWM LLC raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 985 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd now owns 6,410 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,693,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, LVW Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 1.9% in the first quarter. LVW Advisors LLC now owns 3,245 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $857,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

LPL Financial stock opened at $265.22 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a current ratio of 1.84. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $200.18 and a fifty-two week high of $289.88. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $276.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $261.56. The company has a market capitalization of $19.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.03, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.90.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.77 by $0.44. The firm had revenue of $2.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.68 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 55.22% and a net margin of 9.71%. On average, analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 15.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 20th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.45%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 9.06%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 5,677 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $277.31, for a total transaction of $1,574,288.87. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 142,608 shares in the company, valued at $39,546,624.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on LPLA shares. UBS Group increased their price objective on LPL Financial from $285.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $261.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley raised shares of LPL Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $254.00 to $315.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price target on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Raymond James assumed coverage on LPL Financial in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. They issued an “underperform” rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $285.20.

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.