KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Purchases Shares of 26,100 LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 26,100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $8,522,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in LPL Financial by 45.3% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 138 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in LPL Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $59,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the third quarter worth approximately $43,000. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $78,000. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In other news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 4,588 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.07, for a total value of $1,652,001.16. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,538 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,954,837.66. This represents a 21.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total transaction of $402,435.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,490,838.75. This trade represents a 21.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,465 shares of company stock valued at $12,562,070 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Stock Up 4.2 %

LPLA stock opened at $341.74 on Tuesday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $187.19 and a fifty-two week high of $384.04. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $352.24 and a 200-day moving average of $308.94. The company has a market capitalization of $25.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.34, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 2.16.

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

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.35%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on LPLA. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective 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. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $379.17.

LPL Financial Company Profile

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.