Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Reduces Stock Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Key Points

• Westwood Holdings Group Inc. decreased its stock position in LPL Financial Holdings by 21.6%, selling 15,155 shares, and now owns approximately 0.07% of the company valued at $18 million.
• Several hedge funds made significant moves with LPL Financial, including Millstone Evans Group LLC, which increased its holdings by 123.1%, highlighting a trend in institutional investment in the company.
• LPL Financial's latest earnings report revealed earnings per share of $4.51, exceeding estimates, with a year-over-year revenue increase of 30.8%.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lessened its position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 21.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 55,121 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 15,155 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned approximately 0.07% of LPL Financial worth $18,032,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. Millstone Evans Group LLC increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 123.1% during the 1st quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 87 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 234.5% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 63.9% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. City Holding Co. bought a new stake in LPL Financial during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 116.7% during the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 104 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $374.05, for a total value of $561,075.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 19,120 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,151,836. This represents a 7.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on LPLA. TD Cowen lowered LPL Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $406.00 to $403.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on LPL Financial from $425.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. JMP Securities upped their target price on LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Redburn Atlantic raised LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the company from $420.00 to $460.00 in a report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Citigroup lowered LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $80.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $383.58.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LPLA traded up $0.99 during trading on Friday, hitting $369.84. 528,160 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 920,436. The company has a market cap of $29.59 billion, a PE ratio of 25.30, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.66. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $377.68 and a 200 day moving average of $355.84. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $193.22 and a 52-week high of $403.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 3.22 and a quick ratio of 2.31.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 earnings per share (EPS) 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.88 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 30.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.21%.

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.