Bank of Montreal Can Lowers Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Bank of Montreal Can reduced its position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 46.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 40,784 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 35,002 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can owned approximately 0.05% of LPL Financial worth $9,415,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 58.4% in the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 151,979 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,355,000 after buying an additional 56,015 shares during the period. DRW Securities LLC raised its position in LPL Financial by 3.5% in the third quarter. DRW Securities LLC now owns 20,080 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,671,000 after acquiring an additional 680 shares in the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 25.4% in the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 4,702 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,094,000 after acquiring an additional 952 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 5,320 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 21.6% in the 3rd quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 710,867 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $165,369,000 after purchasing an additional 126,266 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $325.15 on Monday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $187.19 and a 1-year high of $330.72. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $274.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $255.03. The firm has a market cap of $24.35 billion, a PE ratio of 24.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 2.16.

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

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

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 paid a $0.30 dividend. 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 payout ratio is 9.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on LPLA shares. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. StockNews.com upgraded LPL Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 9th. Barclays lifted their price objective on LPL Financial from $273.00 to $311.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. TD Cowen upped their target price on LPL Financial from $271.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on LPL Financial from $303.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $290.83.

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.