Principal Financial Group Inc. Reduces Stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group trimmed its stake in LPL by 1.8%, selling 35,538 shares to hold 1,934,483 shares (about 2.42% ownership) valued at roughly $690.95 million, while institutional investors own 95.66% of the company.
• LPL beat Q4 EPS estimates with $5.60 versus $5.49 and reported revenue of $4.94 billion (up 34.6% YoY), and analysts have a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a $398.86 price target.
• Insiders were net sellers (8,569 shares worth ~$2.72M in the last three months, insiders now own 0.60%), and the company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share (0.4% yield) payable June 4.

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 1.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,934,483 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 35,538 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 2.42% of LPL Financial worth $690,954,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 42.7% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,525 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,153,000 after purchasing an additional 1,055 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 209,126 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $68,414,000 after purchasing an additional 1,089 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new stake in LPL Financial during the 1st quarter worth about $1,636,000. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 12.2% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 4,360 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,426,000 after purchasing an additional 473 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in LPL Financial during the 1st quarter worth about $121,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $320.85 on Tuesday. The business's 50-day moving average price is $308.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $342.82. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $281.51 and a twelve month high of $403.58. The stock has a market cap of $25.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.65, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 2.45, a current ratio of 2.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $5.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.49 by $0.11. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 32.06% and a net margin of 4.93%.The firm had revenue of $4.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.98 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $5.15 EPS. The company's revenue was up 34.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 23.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio is 10.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on LPLA shares. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on LPL Financial from $330.00 to $326.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Citigroup reissued a "market outperform" rating on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on LPL Financial from $396.00 to $390.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. UBS Group raised their price target on LPL Financial from $380.00 to $395.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on LPL Financial from $369.00 to $412.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $398.86.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Matthew Enyedi sold 2,109 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.15, for a total transaction of $675,196.35. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 14,121 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,520,838.15. This represents a 12.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 1,581 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.50, for a total value of $506,710.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 21,382 shares in the company, valued at $6,852,931. This trade represents a 6.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders have sold 8,569 shares of company stock worth $2,720,733. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

LPL Financial Profile

LPL Financial NASDAQ: LPLA is a U.S.-focused financial services firm that provides brokerage, custodial and advisory platforms to independent financial advisors, registered investment advisers and institutions. Operating primarily as an independent broker-dealer and custodian, the company supports a network of advisors with the operational, compliance and clearing infrastructure needed to manage client accounts and deliver investment advice outside of traditional wirehouse models.

The firm's product and service offerings include trade execution and clearing, custody services, retirement plan services, model portfolio and advisory platforms, wealth management technology, investment research and product access across equities, fixed income, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and insurance and annuity solutions.

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