LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Shares Sold by Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC reduced its position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 8.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 38,568 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,550 shares during the quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $12,593,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Alliance lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,483 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $484,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Sanchez Wealth Management Group increased its position in LPL Financial by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Sanchez Wealth Management Group now owns 1,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $551,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in LPL Financial by 4.1% in 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 during the last quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 1,076 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $351,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,352 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $441,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Trading Down 2.9 %

NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $327.14 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $24.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.30, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 2.16. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $187.19 and a 1 year high of $384.04. The business has a fifty day moving average of $351.48 and a 200-day moving average of $313.38.

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

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.37%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.55%.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In other news, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total value of $402,435.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,075 shares in the company, valued at $1,490,838.75. This represents a 21.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total transaction of $10,507,633.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 13,663 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,988,907.82. The trade was a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,465 shares of company stock valued at $12,562,070 in the last three months. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on LPLA. TD Cowen raised shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $277.00 to $413.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group raised their price objective on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $379.17.

About LPL Financial

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.