Cinctive Capital Management LP Lowers Stock Holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA

Key Points

• Cinctive Capital Management LP reduced its stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. by 52.6% in the first quarter, selling 36,117 shares and now holding 32,584 shares worth approximately $10.66 million.
• After a better-than-expected quarterly earnings report, which showed earnings per share of $4.51, analysts have mixed views on the stock, with ten rating it as a "Buy" and one as a "Sell."
• LPL Financial recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30, making the annualized dividend yield 0.3% with a low payout ratio of 8.21%.

Cinctive Capital Management LP decreased its holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 52.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 32,584 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 36,117 shares during the period. LPL Financial comprises about 0.8% of Cinctive Capital Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Cinctive Capital Management LP's holdings in LPL Financial were worth $10,660,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dodge & Cox boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 224.1% in the 1st 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 last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 1,453.3% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,038,683 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $339,795,000 after buying an additional 971,814 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its holdings in LPL Financial by 786.2% in the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 959,371 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $313,849,000 after purchasing an additional 851,115 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in LPL Financial by 550.5% in the first quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 759,206 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $248,367,000 after buying an additional 642,503 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Egerton Capital UK LLP lifted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 238.1% during the 1st quarter. Egerton Capital UK LLP now owns 871,265 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $285,026,000 after buying an additional 613,555 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In related news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $374.05, for a total transaction of $561,075.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 19,120 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,151,836. This represents a 7.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 80 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.25, for a total transaction of $28,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 5,582 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,016,497.50. The trade was a 1.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 3,080 shares of company stock valued at $1,163,920. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

LPL Financial Trading Down 7.5%

LPLA stock traded down $27.05 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $332.99. 1,643,770 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 622,539. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.78, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.66. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $204.41 and a 52-week high of $403.58. The business has a 50 day moving average of $371.13 and a 200-day moving average of $354.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 3.22 and a current ratio of 3.22.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.21 by $0.30. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 39.80% and a net margin of 7.91%.The firm 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 company posted $3.88 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 30.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.21%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on LPLA shares. TD Cowen cut shares of LPL Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $406.00 to $403.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $420.00 to $460.00 in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $402.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Citigroup cut LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $80.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $490.00 price objective (up previously from $450.00) on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $383.33.

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.