Nuveen Asset Management LLC Sells 47,971 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC decreased its position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 20.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 188,913 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 47,971 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.25% of LPL Financial worth $61,682,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $305,747,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $295,982,000. Boston Partners raised its stake in LPL Financial by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,905,541 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,278,454,000 after purchasing an additional 805,637 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 20.6% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,050,529 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $996,032,000 after purchasing an additional 522,032 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $153,946,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other LPL Financial news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 4,588 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.07, for a total transaction of $1,652,001.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 16,538 shares in the company, valued at $5,954,837.66. The trade was a 21.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total value of $402,435.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,490,838.75. This represents a 21.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Trading Down 0.1%

LPLA stock traded down $0.55 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $377.40. 402,022 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 834,296. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.88, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.65. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $187.19 and a 52-week high of $394.78. The business has a 50 day moving average of $330.00 and a 200-day moving average of $335.24. 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 (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.54 by $0.61. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.41% and a net margin of 8.55%. The firm had revenue of $3.67 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.63 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.83 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LPLA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JMP Securities increased their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Wall Street Zen cut LPL Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on LPL Financial from $405.00 to $342.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on LPL Financial from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $377.50.

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.