Marc Eliot Cohen Sells 1,100 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Stock

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total value of $402,435.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,490,838.75. This represents a 21.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

LPL Financial Stock Up 2.8 %

LPLA opened at $371.74 on Friday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $187.19 and a 1-year high of $384.04. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $351.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $294.33. 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 stock has a market cap of $27.72 billion, a PE ratio of 26.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.87.

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

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.32%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is 8.55%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on LPLA shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup upped their price objective on LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $435.00 price objective on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $379.17.

Institutional Trading of LPL Financial

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 9,697 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,166,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC raised its position in LPL Financial by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 505 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $165,000 after purchasing an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Alliance raised its position in LPL Financial by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,483 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $484,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in LPL Financial by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $393,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanchez Wealth Management Group raised its position in LPL Financial by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Sanchez Wealth Management Group now owns 1,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $551,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About LPL Financial

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.