Natixis Advisors LLC Has $18.08 Million Stock Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 2.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 55,367 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,553 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC owned 0.07% of LPL Financial worth $18,078,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 15.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 25,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,913,000 after acquiring an additional 3,444 shares during the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 5.1% during the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $220,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 27.9% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,081 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,182,000 after acquiring an additional 1,107 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 49.1% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 14,285 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,323,000 after acquiring an additional 4,702 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mutual of America Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 23.0% during the third quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 4,388 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,021,000 after acquiring an additional 821 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total transaction of $10,507,633.78. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of LPL Financial 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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,465 shares of company stock worth $12,562,070 over the last three months. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen raised shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $277.00 to $413.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $435.00 price target on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays raised their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $379.17.

LPL Financial Trading Down 0.6 %

NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $326.30 on Wednesday. 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 capitalization of $24.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.24, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.82. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $352.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $305.72. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.19 and a 12 month high of $384.04.

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

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.37%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.55%.

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.