LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Shares Sold by Forsta AP Fonden

Forsta AP Fonden decreased its position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 0.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 15,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Forsta AP Fonden’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $5,061,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Creative Planning boosted its stake in LPL Financial by 14.7% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 4,574 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,278,000 after purchasing an additional 586 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $227,000. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in LPL Financial by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 14,439 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,033,000 after buying an additional 805 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in LPL Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $3,478,000. Finally, Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in LPL Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at $450,000. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LPLA has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. 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 report on Friday. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $435.00 price objective on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Friday. TD Cowen raised LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $277.00 to $413.00 in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on LPL Financial from $303.00 to $309.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $370.50.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total transaction of $101,241.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,301,204.80. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

LPL Financial Trading Up 1.4 %

NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $366.89 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $335.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $273.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.87. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $187.19 and a 1-year high of $375.74. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.01 by $0.24. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.73% and a return on equity of 49.47%. Sell-side analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 16.17 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.55%.

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.