Avior Wealth Management LLC Buys 740 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 40.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 740 shares during the period. Avior Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $585,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. First Manhattan Co. purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Smithfield Trust Co lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 164.4% during the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 119 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP boosted its position in LPL Financial by 220.4% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 173 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Fred Alger Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the third quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, First Capital Advisors Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $49,000. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 34,807 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.54, for a total value of $9,277,457.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 141,810 shares in the company, valued at $37,798,037.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other LPL Financial news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 34,807 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.54, for a total value of $9,277,457.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 141,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,798,037.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 7,089 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $265.66, for a total value of $1,883,263.74. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 133,169 shares in the company, valued at $35,377,676.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 60,151 shares of company stock worth $15,911,088 over the last three months. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

LPL Financial Price Performance

Shares of LPLA stock opened at $259.77 on Friday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $179.00 and a twelve month high of $274.35. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $262.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $240.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.33 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $2.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.55 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 57.68%. LPL Financial’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $4.21 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 15.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on LPLA shares. Morgan Stanley raised shares of LPL Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $254.00 to $315.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $260.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Raymond James began coverage on LPL Financial in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. They set an “underperform” rating for the company. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $302.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $268.36.

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.