LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Director Matthew Enyedi Sells 2,109 Shares of Stock

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Director Matthew Enyedi sold 2,109 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.15, for a total value of $675,196.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 14,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,520,838.15. This represents a 12.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.

LPL Financial Stock Down 6.0%

Shares of LPL Financial stock opened at $300.38 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.60, a current ratio of 2.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $357.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $353.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.28, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.58. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $262.83 and a 12-month high of $403.58.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $5.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.82 by $0.41. LPL Financial had a net margin of 5.08% and a return on equity of 34.19%. The firm had revenue of $4.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $4.25 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 10th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.90%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LPLA has been the topic of several analyst reports. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $399.00 to $378.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. Citizens Jmp set a $475.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Wolfe Research set a $478.00 price target on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on LPL Financial from $444.00 to $434.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $428.71.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LPL Financial

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of LPLA. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 10,666 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,809,000 after buying an additional 397 shares during the period. DGS Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in LPL Financial by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 1,648 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $589,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. WealthPoint Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $2,568,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its position in shares of LPL Financial by 16.9% during the fourth quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 4,527 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,617,000 after purchasing an additional 655 shares during the period. Finally, Vident Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 22.3% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 3,066 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,095,000 after buying an additional 560 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About LPL Financial

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.