Poplar Forest Capital LLC Cuts Stock Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Poplar Forest Capital LLC lowered its position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 21.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 26,011 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,300 shares during the period. LPL Financial makes up about 1.6% of Poplar Forest Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Poplar Forest Capital LLC’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $8,493,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 24.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,322,571 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $772,930,000 after buying an additional 650,675 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,436,831 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $333,581,000 after buying an additional 36,474 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 27.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,275,136 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $296,635,000 after buying an additional 276,166 shares during the last quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP grew its position in LPL Financial by 50.0% during the 3rd quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP now owns 750,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $174,472,000 after purchasing an additional 250,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Westfield Capital Management Co. LP grew its position in LPL Financial by 21.6% during the 3rd quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 710,867 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $165,369,000 after purchasing an additional 126,266 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

LPLA opened at $371.74 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 2.16. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $351.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $294.33. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $187.19 and a 1 year high of $384.04. The stock has a market cap of $27.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.48, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.87.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.01 by $0.24. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 49.41%. Equities research analysts anticipate 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 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.55%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on LPLA shares. StockNews.com raised shares of LPL Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 9th. UBS Group boosted 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. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $435.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $379.17.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total transaction of $101,241.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,301,204.80. This represents a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was 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 a total of 34,770 shares of company stock worth $12,663,312 in the last three months. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

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.