Balyasny Asset Management L.P. Acquires New Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 471,488 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $153,946,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. owned about 0.63% of LPL Financial at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of LPLA. Boston Partners increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 26.0% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,905,541 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,278,454,000 after buying an additional 805,637 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,660,736 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $868,757,000 after acquiring an additional 57,485 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,459,942 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $475,946,000 after purchasing an additional 23,111 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in LPL Financial by 27.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,275,136 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $296,635,000 after purchasing an additional 276,166 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in LPL Financial by 57.1% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,115,708 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $364,290,000 after purchasing an additional 405,341 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Trading Up 2.9 %

Shares of LPL Financial stock opened at $333.56 on Friday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.19 and a twelve month high of $384.04. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $322.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $326.55. 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 market capitalization of $26.47 billion, a PE ratio of 23.76, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.64.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LPLA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group lifted their price objective on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup decreased their price target on LPL Financial from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JMP Securities decreased their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $435.00 to $420.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $414.00 to $365.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, LPL Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $369.83.

Insider Buying and Selling at LPL Financial

In other news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total value of $10,507,633.78. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,663 shares of the company’s stock, 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 filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,490,838.75. This represents a 21.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,465 shares of company stock worth $12,562,070. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

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.