Blue Trust Inc. Reduces Stock Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Blue Trust Inc. decreased its holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 16.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 814 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 163 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $266,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 24.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,322,571 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $772,930,000 after purchasing an additional 650,675 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 27.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,275,136 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $296,635,000 after buying an additional 276,166 shares during the period. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP boosted its position in LPL Financial by 50.0% in the 3rd quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP now owns 750,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $174,472,000 after purchasing an additional 250,000 shares in the last quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. grew its position in LPL Financial by 82.0% during the third quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 497,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $115,635,000 after buying an additional 223,931 shares during the period. Finally, Azora Capital LP grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 52.2% during the 3rd quarter. Azora Capital LP now owns 643,544 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $149,708,000 after acquiring an additional 220,622 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

LPL Financial Price Performance

LPLA opened at $366.89 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The firm has a market cap of $27.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.87. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $187.19 and a fifty-two week high of $375.74. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $335.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $274.40.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.01 by $0.24. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.47% and a net margin of 8.73%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 16.17 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 9.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total transaction of $101,241.70. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,920 shares in the company, valued at $1,301,204.80. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup increased their price target on LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $303.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $435.00 price objective on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $370.50.

LPL Financial Company 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.