BNP Paribas Financial Markets Has $9.14 Million Stock Holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets lessened its holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 54.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,979 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 34,068 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets' holdings in LPL Financial were worth $9,135,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 27.6% during the third 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 in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 6,416 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,094,000 after buying an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. TT International Asset Management LTD increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. TT International Asset Management LTD now owns 12,043 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,932,000 after buying an additional 777 shares in the last quarter. Winthrop Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Winthrop Advisory Group LLC now owns 20,954 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,842,000 after buying an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 1,578 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $521,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In other news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 4,588 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.07, for a total transaction of $1,652,001.16. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,538 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,954,837.66. This trade represents a 21.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of LPL Financial 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 directly owns 4,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 own 1.30% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Trading Up 0.8%

LPLA stock traded up $3.19 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $384.61. The company's stock had a trading volume of 421,000 shares, compared to its average volume of 836,541. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $187.19 and a 52 week high of $390.23. The stock has a market cap of $30.76 billion, a PE ratio of 27.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $326.05 and its 200-day simple moving average is $333.50.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.54 by $0.61. The company had revenue of $3.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.63 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 49.41%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.83 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.31%. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio is 8.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on LPLA shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $405.00 to $342.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of LPL Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $374.42.

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.