Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Reduces Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP decreased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 26.4% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 575,462 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 206,770 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial makes up about 0.8% of Westfield Capital Management Co. LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $191,450,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of LPLA. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in LPL Financial by 42.7% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,525 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,153,000 after purchasing an additional 1,055 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 0.5% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 209,126 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $68,414,000 after buying an additional 1,089 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,636,000. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 12.2% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 4,360 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,426,000 after purchasing an additional 473 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in LPL Financial during the first quarter valued at approximately $121,000. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LPLA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $426.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $421.00 price target on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Friday, October 31st. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Citizens Jmp set a $475.00 target price on LPL Financial in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, UBS Group set a $500.00 price target on LPL Financial in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $428.71.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $318.59 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $25.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.94, a PEG ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 0.58. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $262.83 and a 1 year high of $403.58. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $359.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $354.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 2.45 and a quick ratio of 2.60.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $5.23 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.82 by $0.41. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 34.19% and a net margin of 5.08%.The firm had revenue of $4.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $4.25 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is 10.90%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Greg Gates sold 750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $370.97, for a total transaction of $278,227.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 14,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,423,581.40. The trade was a 4.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 80 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $352.48, for a total value of $28,198.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 5,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,939,344.96. This represents a 1.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 5,888 shares of company stock worth $2,182,893. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

LPL Financial Profile

LPL Financial (NASDAQ: LPLA) is a U.S.-focused financial services firm that provides brokerage, custodial and advisory platforms to independent financial advisors, registered investment advisers and institutions. Operating primarily as an independent broker-dealer and custodian, the company supports a network of advisors with the operational, compliance and clearing infrastructure needed to manage client accounts and deliver investment advice outside of traditional wirehouse models.

The firm’s product and service offerings include trade execution and clearing, custody services, retirement plan services, model portfolio and advisory platforms, wealth management technology, investment research and product access across equities, fixed income, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and insurance and annuity solutions.