Blair William & Co. IL Lowers Stock Holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA

Key Points

• Blair William & Co. IL reduced its stake in LPL Financial Holdings by 50.3%, owning 10,148 shares valued at approximately $3.8 million after selling over 10,000 shares during the second quarter.
• LPL Financial's recent quarterly earnings exceeded estimates, reporting $4.51 EPS and a revenue increase of 30.8% year-over-year, totaling $3.84 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, representing an annualized yield of 0.4% with a payout ratio of 8.21%.

Blair William & Co. IL decreased its position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 50.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,148 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 10,290 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL's holdings in LPL Financial were worth $3,805,000 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. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in LPL Financial by 2.1% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,372,857 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,411,956,000 after purchasing an additional 154,200 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 0.8% in the first quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,681,617 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $877,264,000 after buying an additional 20,881 shares during the period. Dodge & Cox increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 224.1% in the first quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 1,523,460 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $498,385,000 after buying an additional 1,053,351 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 35.9% in the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,516,060 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $495,964,000 after buying an additional 400,352 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 8.8% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,304,780 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $426,846,000 after buying an additional 105,665 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $317.71 on Tuesday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $245.87 and a 1 year high of $403.58. The company has a market cap of $25.42 billion, a PE ratio of 21.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 3.22 and a quick ratio of 3.22. The stock's 50-day moving average is $346.17 and its 200 day moving average is $353.27.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.21 by $0.30. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 39.80% and a net margin of 7.91%.The company had revenue of $3.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.88 EPS. LPL Financial's revenue was up 30.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. LPL Financial's payout ratio is presently 8.21%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on LPLA shares. UBS Group set a $455.00 price objective on LPL Financial in a report on Thursday. TD Cowen downgraded LPL Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $406.00 to $403.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on LPL Financial from $490.00 to $462.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on LPL Financial from $425.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn downgraded LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $390.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Friday, September 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $395.85.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, Director Greg Gates sold 750 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $314.42, for a total transaction of $235,815.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 16,870 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,304,265.40. The trade was a 4.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 80 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.25, for a total value of $28,900.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 5,582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,016,497.50. The trade was a 1.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 3,830 shares of company stock worth $1,333,105. Insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

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.

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