LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA Shares Sold by Friedenthal Financial

Friedenthal Financial lowered its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 7.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 228 shares during the period. Friedenthal Financial’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $1,003,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its position in LPL Financial by 7.6% during the first quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 4,141 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,355,000 after buying an additional 292 shares during the period. Portside Wealth Group LLC lifted its position in LPL Financial by 6.5% during the first quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,111 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $363,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. City Holding Co. purchased a new position in LPL Financial during the first quarter worth about $34,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in LPL Financial by 33.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 476 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $156,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the period. Finally, Avanza Fonder AB lifted its position in LPL Financial by 25.4% during the first quarter. Avanza Fonder AB now owns 5,607 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,897,000 after buying an additional 1,134 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on LPLA. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on LPL Financial from $490.00 to $462.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on LPL Financial from $425.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded LPL Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on LPL Financial in a report on Friday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $405.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on LPL Financial from $463.00 to $460.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $395.77.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In other news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 80 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.25, for a total value of $28,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,016,497.50. This trade represents a 1.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $374.05, for a total value of $561,075.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 19,120 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,151,836. The trade was a 7.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 3,080 shares of company stock valued at $1,097,290. Insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LPLA opened at $317.32 on Wednesday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $236.59 and a fifty-two week high of $403.58. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $351.25 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $353.65. The company has a quick ratio of 3.22, a current ratio of 3.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The firm has a market cap of $25.39 billion, a PE ratio of 21.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.61.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.21 by $0.30. The company had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.77 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 39.80% and a net margin of 7.91%.The business’s revenue was up 30.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.88 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.21%.

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.