Royal Bank of Canada Has $55.54 Million Stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Royal Bank of Canada trimmed its position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 3.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 170,086 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 6,952 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $55,535,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth $59,000. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth $65,000. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on LPLA shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $405.00 to $342.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. UBS Group lifted their price objective 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. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $374.42.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 4,588 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.07, for a total value of $1,652,001.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 16,538 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,954,837.66. The trade was a 21.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 4,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,490,838.75. The trade was a 21.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

LPL Financial Trading Down 0.3%

LPLA stock opened at $384.20 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 2.16. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $328.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $334.94. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $187.19 and a one year high of $390.23. The stock has a market cap of $30.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.65.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.54 by $0.61. The company had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.63 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 49.41%. LPL Financial’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.83 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.31%. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is presently 8.30%.

LPL Financial 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.