LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) CFO Matthew Audette Sells 1,581 Shares

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) CFO Matthew Audette sold 1,581 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.50, for a total value of $506,710.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 21,382 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,852,931. This trade represents a 6.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LPLA opened at $300.38 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 2.45 and a quick ratio of 2.60. The firm has a market cap of $24.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.28, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.58. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $357.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $353.36. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $262.83 and a one year high of $403.58.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $5.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.82 by $0.41. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 34.19% and a net margin of 5.08%.The company had revenue of $4.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.25 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.90%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LPL Financial

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in LPL Financial during the second quarter worth about $26,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its holdings in LPL Financial by 912.5% in the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 81 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 3,650.0% in the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 75 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. boosted its holdings in LPL Financial by 550.0% in the 4th quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 78 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $421.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $426.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on LPL Financial from $462.00 to $447.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Citizens Jmp set a $475.00 price objective on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Friday, October 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $428.71.

LPL Financial Company Profile

LPL Financial (NASDAQ: LPLA) is a U.S.-focused financial services firm that provides brokerage, custodial and advisory platforms to independent financial advisors, registered investment advisers and institutions. Operating primarily as an independent broker-dealer and custodian, the company supports a network of advisors with the operational, compliance and clearing infrastructure needed to manage client accounts and deliver investment advice outside of traditional wirehouse models.

The firm’s product and service offerings include trade execution and clearing, custody services, retirement plan services, model portfolio and advisory platforms, wealth management technology, investment research and product access across equities, fixed income, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and insurance and annuity solutions.