Primecap Management Co. CA Sells 24,900 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Primecap Management Co. CA lessened its position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 60.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 16,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 24,900 shares during the period. Primecap Management Co. CA’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $5,224,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in LPLA. Wealth Alliance raised its stake in LPL Financial by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,483 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $484,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. Sanchez Wealth Management Group increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Sanchez Wealth Management Group now owns 1,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $551,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 916 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $299,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in LPL Financial by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,352 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $441,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in LPL Financial by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,416 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $562,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was 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 approximately $1,490,838.75. This represents a 21.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 4,588 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 16,538 shares in the company, valued at $5,954,837.66. This represents a 21.72 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 34,465 shares of company stock valued at $12,562,070. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

LPL Financial Price Performance

LPLA stock opened at $332.21 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $351.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $305.90. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.19 and a 12 month high of $384.04. 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 $24.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.66, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.82.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released 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%. On average, analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share 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 $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.55%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $435.00 price target on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays upped their price objective on LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.