Crestline Management LP Buys 3,117 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Crestline Management LP lifted its position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 18.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,783 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 3,117 shares during the quarter. Crestline Management LP's holdings in LPL Financial were worth $6,459,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of LPLA. Graney & King LLC purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 45.3% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 138 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the 4th quarter worth $59,000. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $65,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 shares were sold at an average price of $360.07, for a total value of $1,652,001.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,538 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,954,837.66. The trade was a 21.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total transaction of $402,435.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,075 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,490,838.75. This represents a 21.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of LPL Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $405.00 to $342.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $371.50.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LPLA traded up $16.00 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $376.42. The stock had a trading volume of 652,351 shares, compared to its average volume of 828,812. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $320.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $329.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.83, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.65. 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 Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $187.19 and a 1-year high of $384.04.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.54 by $0.61. The business had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.63 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 49.41%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.83 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.32%. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 8.30%.

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.