Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. Sells 1,240 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 81.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 274 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,240 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.'s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $90,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Graney & King LLC purchased a new stake in LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in LPL Financial by 234.5% in the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in LPL Financial by 63.9% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. City Holding Co. purchased a new stake in LPL Financial in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. 95.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

LPLA traded up $14.44 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $393.31. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,062,477 shares, compared to its average volume of 811,550. The stock has a market cap of $31.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.22, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $378.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $351.56. The company has a current ratio of 2.31, a quick ratio of 2.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.19 and a twelve month high of $395.77.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.54 by $0.61. The firm had revenue of $3.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.63 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 46.34% and a net margin of 8.23%. The company's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.83 EPS. Research analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.30%.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $382.63, for a total value of $573,945.00. Following the sale, the director owned 20,620 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,889,830.60. This trade represents a 6.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on LPLA shares. Redburn Atlantic raised LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $420.00 to $460.00 in a research note on Monday, June 9th. JMP Securities upped their target price on LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Barclays upped their target price on LPL Financial from $450.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on LPL Financial from $402.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $490.00 target price (up from $450.00) on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $372.15.

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.