LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Shares Sold by Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC

Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC lowered its position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 6.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,370 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 90 shares during the quarter. Ironwood Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $447,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 50.6% in the 3rd 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 during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,633,000. Truist Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 192,153 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $62,740,000 after acquiring an additional 14,106 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 15.7% in the 3rd 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 during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in LPL Financial by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 31,209 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,190,000 after buying an additional 1,383 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Trading Up 4.2 %

Shares of LPL Financial stock opened at $321.99 on Friday. 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 $24.05 billion, a PE ratio of 22.93, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.82. The business’s fifty day moving average is $352.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $302.47. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $187.19 and a fifty-two week high of $384.04.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.01 by $0.24. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.41% and a net margin of 8.55%. Analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other LPL Financial news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 4,588 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.07, for a total value of $1,652,001.16. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,538 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,954,837.66. This trade represents a 21.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total value of $402,435.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,075 shares in the company, valued at $1,490,838.75. This trade represents a 21.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 34,465 shares of company stock valued at $12,562,070. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group increased their target price on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup increased their target price on LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.