LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Shares Purchased by DnB Asset Management AS

DnB Asset Management AS raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,944 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 310 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $4,226,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the third quarter valued at $2,633,000. Truist Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 192,153 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $62,740,000 after purchasing an additional 14,106 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 15.7% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 25,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,913,000 after buying an additional 3,444 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of LPL Financial by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 31,209 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,190,000 after buying an additional 1,383 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 335,749 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $109,625,000 after buying an additional 13,936 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Price Performance

LPLA stock opened at $336.89 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $351.92 and a 200-day simple moving average of $312.54. The firm has a market cap of $25.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.00, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $187.19 and a 1 year high of $384.04.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 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%. On average, 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 firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th were paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on LPLA. TD Cowen upgraded LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $277.00 to $413.00 in a report on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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, UBS Group raised 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $379.17.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In related news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the company’s 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $4,988,907.82. This represents a 67.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now owns 4,075 shares in the company, 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 34,465 shares of company stock valued at $12,562,070. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial 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.