Cigna Investments Inc. New Acquires New Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Cigna Investments Inc. New bought a new position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 746 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $244,000.

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

LPL Financial Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $362.42 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $187.19 and a fifty-two week high of $375.83. The stock has a market cap of $27.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.87. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $341.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $281.50.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.01 by $0.24. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 49.41%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.55%.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In related news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total value of $101,241.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 3,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,301,204.80. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total value of $10,507,633.78. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,663 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,988,907.82. The trade was a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on LPLA shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. TD Cowen upgraded LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $277.00 to $413.00 in a report on Thursday, December 19th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $435.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group lifted their target price on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $379.17.

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.