Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Lowers Stock Holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board reduced its position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 40.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 360,578 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 247,187 shares during the quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $117,732,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 45.3% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 138 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $59,000. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $65,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $78,000. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at LPL Financial

In other news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total transaction of $10,507,633.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,663 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,988,907.82. This trade represents a 67.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, 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 ownership of the stock. 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 company insiders.

LPL Financial Trading Down 0.0 %

NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $306.02 on Friday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.19 and a 12 month high of $384.04. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $335.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $320.55. The stock has a market cap of $24.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.64.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.39%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on LPLA shares. TD Cowen raised shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $277.00 to $413.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on LPL Financial from $405.00 to $342.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. UBS Group lifted their price target on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com lowered LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $369.83.

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.