Voya Investment Management LLC Sells 4,565 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Voya Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 12.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 33,122 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,565 shares during the quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $10,815,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in LPL Financial by 2.8% in the third quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,835 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,125,000 after buying an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 15.6% in the 3rd quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 9,669 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,249,000 after acquiring an additional 1,304 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at $182,000. Tidal Investments LLC grew its position in LPL Financial by 98.9% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 7,662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,782,000 after acquiring an additional 3,809 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 25,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,913,000 after purchasing an additional 3,444 shares in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total value of $10,507,633.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,663 shares in the company, valued at $4,988,907.82. This trade represents a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The sale 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 that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total value of $402,435.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,490,838.75. This trade represents a 21.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,465 shares of company stock worth $12,562,070 in the last quarter. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of LPLA opened at $315.43 on Tuesday. 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’s fifty day simple moving average is $326.20 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $325.06. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.19 and a 12 month high of $384.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.64.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released 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 return on equity of 49.41% and a net margin of 8.55%. As a group, analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on LPLA shares. Barclays cut their price target on LPL Financial from $414.00 to $365.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. UBS Group lifted their target price 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. StockNews.com cut shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, LPL Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $369.83.

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.