Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC Sells 60 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC cut its holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 3.9% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,460 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 60 shares during the period. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $340,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LPLA. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in LPL Financial in the second quarter worth $25,000. Key Financial Inc bought a new stake in LPL Financial during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in LPL Financial during the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Paladin Wealth LLC bought a new stake in LPL Financial during the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in LPL Financial by 360.7% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on LPLA. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $271.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $271.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $303.00 to $309.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $286.92.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $325.15 on Friday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $187.19 and a 12-month high of $330.72. 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 capitalization of $24.35 billion, a PE ratio of 24.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.85. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $274.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $255.12.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.69 by $0.47. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.73% and a return on equity of 49.47%. The firm had revenue of $3.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.74 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 16.1 earnings per share 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. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.37%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.02%.

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.