Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $1.30 Million Stock Holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lowered its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 6.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,974 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 279 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $1,298,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Xponance Inc. boosted its stake in LPL Financial by 10.4% during the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 14,429 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,711,000 after purchasing an additional 1,363 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its stake in LPL Financial by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,905,541 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,278,454,000 after purchasing an additional 805,637 shares during the last quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR acquired a new position in LPL Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,031,000. Signaturefd LLC boosted 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 valued at $441,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in LPL Financial by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,479 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $809,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 4,588 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.07, for a total transaction of $1,652,001.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,538 shares in the company, valued at $5,954,837.66. The trade was a 21.72 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $1,490,838.75. This trade represents a 21.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,465 shares of company stock worth $12,562,070 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on LPLA. 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 report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com cut shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $379.17.

LPL Financial Stock Down 2.0 %

LPL Financial stock opened at $327.90 on Friday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $187.19 and a 1-year high of $384.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.35, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.82. 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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $351.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $307.43.

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

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.37%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.55%.

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.