BNP Paribas Financial Markets Sells 56,324 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets cut its stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 47.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 62,047 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 56,324 shares during the quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned 0.08% of LPL Financial worth $14,434,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its stake in LPL Financial by 50.6% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 15,841 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,685,000 after buying an additional 5,320 shares during the period. Swedbank AB bought a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,648,000. Raymond James & Associates grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 394,091 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $110,070,000 after purchasing an additional 20,123 shares during the period. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. increased its stake in LPL Financial by 68.2% during the 3rd quarter. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. now owns 217,451 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,586,000 after purchasing an additional 88,196 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in LPL Financial by 882.4% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 85,914 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $23,996,000 after buying an additional 77,169 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on LPLA shares. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $309.00 to $282.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded LPL Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $235.00 to $285.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. UBS Group boosted their price target on LPL Financial from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Citigroup increased their price objective on LPL Financial from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $310.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $290.83.

LPL Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $325.15 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.35 billion, a PE ratio of 24.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.85. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $187.19 and a 1-year high of $330.72. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $274.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $255.03. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.69 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $3.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.73% and a return on equity of 49.47%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.74 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 16.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.02%.

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.