LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Stake Cut by Fairview Capital Investment Management LLC

Fairview Capital Investment Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 478,002 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 7,944 shares during the period. LPL Financial comprises approximately 8.1% of Fairview Capital Investment Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its largest holding. Fairview Capital Investment Management LLC owned about 0.64% of LPL Financial worth $156,073,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in LPL Financial in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $42,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake 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 worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Atala Financial Inc bought a new position in LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $59,000. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In related news, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the 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 approximately $1,490,838.75. This trade represents a 21.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 4,588 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.07, for a total value of $1,652,001.16. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Price Performance

Shares of LPL Financial stock traded up $21.43 on Friday, hitting $360.42. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,110,507 shares, compared to its average volume of 829,444. The company has a market capitalization of $28.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.65. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $320.64 and a 200-day moving average price of $329.85. 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 - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 49.41%. The company had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.63 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.83 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LPLA. StockNews.com downgraded shares of LPL Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. UBS Group increased their price objective 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. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $405.00 to $342.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price 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. Finally, JMP Securities raised their price target on LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $371.50.

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.