Pitcairn Co. Sells 2,485 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA

Pitcairn Co. trimmed its stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 52.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,243 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,485 shares during the quarter. Pitcairn Co.’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $746,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of LPLA. Camden National Bank lifted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Camden National Bank now owns 967 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $363,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stratos Investment Management LLC now owns 715 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $238,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the last quarter. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC now owns 804 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $302,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. PUREfi Wealth LLC raised its stake in LPL Financial by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. PUREfi Wealth LLC now owns 732 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $244,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period. Finally, Smithfield Trust Co raised its stake in LPL Financial by 29.4% in the 2nd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 154 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $58,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. UBS Group set a $500.00 price target on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $426.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $444.00 to $434.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $462.00 to $447.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. One investment 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $428.71.

LPL Financial Stock Down 1.1%

LPLA stock opened at $313.56 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $351.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $351.72. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $262.83 and a twelve month high of $403.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.11 billion, a PE ratio of 28.48, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a quick ratio of 2.45, a current ratio of 2.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $5.23 earnings per share (EPS) 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $4.25 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In other news, Director Matthew Enyedi sold 2,109 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.15, for a total value of $675,196.35. Following the transaction, the director owned 14,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,520,838.15. This represents a 12.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 1,581 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.50, for a total value of $506,710.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 21,382 shares in the company, valued at $6,852,931. This trade represents a 6.88% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

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.