LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Position Increased by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 57.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,115,708 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 405,341 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $364,290,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. Boston Partners increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 26.0% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,905,541 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,278,454,000 after acquiring an additional 805,637 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,459,942 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $475,946,000 after buying an additional 23,111 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 27.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,275,136 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $296,635,000 after buying an additional 276,166 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $305,747,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in LPL Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $295,982,000. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total transaction of $402,435.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,490,838.75. The trade was a 21.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 4,588 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,538 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,954,837.66. This represents a 21.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 34,465 shares of company stock worth $12,562,070. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LPLA opened at $338.40 on Thursday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $187.19 and a 52-week high of $384.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.10, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.82. 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 stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $350.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $314.46.

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, 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th were paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.35%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 8.55%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on LPLA shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com cut shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and issued a $435.00 price target on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $380.42.

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.