MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH Sells 14,878 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA

Key Points

• MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH reduced its holdings in LPL Financial by 69.8%, selling 14,878 shares to hold a total of 6,447 shares valued at $2.4 million.
• Analysts have mixed views on LPL Financial, with ten offering a "buy" rating, three a "hold," and one a "sell," while the average target price stands at $391.54.
• LPL Financial recently reported strong quarterly earnings, with a 30.8% year-over-year revenue increase and earnings per share of $4.51, exceeding expectations.

MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH cut its position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 69.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,447 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 14,878 shares during the quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH's holdings in LPL Financial were worth $2,417,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in LPLA. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 9.8% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 1,100 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $359,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in LPL Financial in the fourth quarter worth $799,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in LPL Financial in the fourth quarter worth $205,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in LPL Financial in the fourth quarter worth $6,821,000. Finally, Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH bought a new stake in LPL Financial in the fourth quarter worth $271,000. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on LPL Financial from $402.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Rothschild & Co Redburn downgraded LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $390.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, September 19th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $490.00 target price (up from $450.00) on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $391.54.

LPL Financial Stock Up 1.0%

LPLA stock opened at $336.52 on Friday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $222.74 and a 1-year high of $403.58. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $360.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $353.45. 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 has a market capitalization of $26.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.02, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.66.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.88 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 30.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $338.21, for a total transaction of $507,315.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 17,620 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,959,260.20. This represents a 7.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 80 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 owned 5,582 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,016,497.50. This trade represents a 1.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,580 shares of company stock valued at $1,671,235. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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