LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Short Interest Down 30.6% in November

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) was the target of a large drop in short interest during the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 749,900 shares, a drop of 30.6% from the November 15th total of 1,080,000 shares. Approximately 1.0% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 768,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.0 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total transaction of $101,241.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,920 shares in the company, valued at $1,301,204.80. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LPL Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. Bridges Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in LPL Financial by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,185 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $276,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in LPL Financial by 1.8% in the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,416 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $562,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 3.9% during the third quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,148 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $267,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 1.1% during the third quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 4,107 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $956,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 5.1% during the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $220,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

LPLA stock traded up $0.13 during trading on Friday, reaching $330.23. 299,371 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 719,808. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $293.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $258.97. The company has a market capitalization of $24.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.86. LPL Financial has a twelve month low of $187.19 and a twelve month high of $334.38.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.69 by $0.47. The firm had revenue of $3.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.73% and a return on equity of 49.47%. LPL Financial’s revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.74 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that LPL Financial will post 16.1 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 14th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 9.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LPLA has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on LPL Financial from $310.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on LPL Financial from $309.00 to $282.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. StockNews.com raised LPL Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 9th. UBS Group increased their price target on LPL Financial from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on LPL Financial from $271.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $305.17.

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.