Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lowered its position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 18.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,858 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,983 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $4,198,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 27,738 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,057,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the period. Amundi raised its position in LPL Financial by 166.0% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 145,443 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,494,000 after purchasing an additional 90,775 shares during the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $280,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 22.8% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,897 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,599,000 after buying an additional 909 shares during the period. Finally, Camden National Bank bought a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $360,000. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LPLA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $435.00 price target on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lifted their price objective on LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, LPL Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $379.17.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In other news, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total value of $402,435.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,075 shares in the company, valued at $1,490,838.75. The trade was a 21.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total value of $10,507,633.78. Following the sale, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 34,465 shares of company stock valued at $12,562,070. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

LPL Financial Trading Up 1.9 %

LPL Financial stock opened at $319.20 on Thursday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.19 and a 12 month high of $384.04. 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 business’s fifty day simple moving average is $353.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $302.31. The company has a market capitalization of $23.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.82.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share (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%. As a group, equities analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.38%. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is currently 8.55%.

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.