United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund Acquires New Stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund bought a new position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 1,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $327,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its stake in LPL Financial by 11.9% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,988 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $928,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 321,813 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $74,863,000 after acquiring an additional 9,899 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in LPL Financial by 164.2% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 11,046 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,570,000 after acquiring an additional 6,865 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB increased its stake in LPL Financial by 19.8% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 16,429 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,822,000 after acquiring an additional 2,720 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its position in LPL Financial by 50.6% during the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 15,841 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,685,000 after purchasing an additional 5,320 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

LPL Financial stock opened at $339.15 on Thursday. 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 cap of $25.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.16, 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 moving average of $352.42 and a 200-day moving average of $310.06.

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

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The business 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.35%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 4,588 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $5,954,837.66. This trade represents a 21.72 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total transaction of $402,435.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,075 shares in the company, valued at $1,490,838.75. The trade was a 21.26 % 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 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on LPLA shares. Citigroup increased their price objective on LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. StockNews.com cut shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $379.17.

LPL Financial Company Profile

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.