Truist Financial Corp Raises Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Truist Financial Corp increased its holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 7.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 192,153 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,106 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $62,740,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Net Worth Advisory Group purchased a new stake in LPL Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $240,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in LPL Financial by 101.4% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 977 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $227,000 after purchasing an additional 492 shares during the period. OLD National Bancorp IN increased its position in LPL Financial by 21.2% during the third quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 3,030 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $705,000 after purchasing an additional 529 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. raised its stake in LPL Financial by 4.7% during the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 22,784 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,300,000 after purchasing an additional 1,026 shares during the period. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 12,332 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,869,000 after purchasing an additional 495 shares during the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of LPLA stock opened at $373.98 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $344.99 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $285.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 2.16. The firm has a market capitalization 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 Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.19 and a 12 month high of $376.11.

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

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders 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 0.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is currently 8.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total value of $101,241.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,301,204.80. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total value of $10,507,633.78. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 13,663 shares in the company, valued at $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.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LPLA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup upped their price objective on LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. UBS Group raised their price objective on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. TD Cowen raised shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $277.00 to $413.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. StockNews.com raised shares of LPL Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 9th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $379.17.

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.