Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. Sells 2,139 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. trimmed its holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 60.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,411 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,139 shares during the period. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc.’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $461,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in LPL Financial by 50.6% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 15,841 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,685,000 after acquiring an additional 5,320 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in LPL Financial in the third quarter worth approximately $2,633,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in LPL Financial by 15.7% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 25,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,913,000 after acquiring an additional 3,444 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in LPL Financial by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 31,209 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,190,000 after acquiring an additional 1,383 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in LPL Financial by 27.6% in the third 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 in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of LPL Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 9th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $379.17.

LPL Financial Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $373.98 on Monday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.19 and a 12 month high of $376.11. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $343.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $284.71. 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 $28.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.87.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, topping 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, research analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.32%. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is presently 8.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total transaction of $101,241.70. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,301,204.80. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

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.