Headlands Technologies LLC Boosts Stock Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Headlands Technologies LLC raised its stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 192.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,670 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 3,075 shares during the quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC's holdings in LPL Financial were worth $1,063,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of LPLA. Smithfield Trust Co lifted its position in LPL Financial by 164.4% in the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 119 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its stake in LPL Financial by 770.0% during the third quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 261 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in LPL Financial by 724.2% during the third quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 272 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the period. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new stake in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $73,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. JMP Securities boosted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of LPL Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $254.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. They set an "underperform" rating on the stock. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $266.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $268.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at LPL Financial

In other news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.35, for a total value of $2,563,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 137,044 shares of the company's stock, valued at $35,131,229.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Matthew Enyedi sold 1,381 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.94, for a total value of $354,834.14. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 8,634 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,218,419.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.35, for a total value of $2,563,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 137,044 shares of the company's stock, valued at $35,131,229.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 60,151 shares of company stock worth $15,911,088 over the last three months. Insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Stock Up 0.3 %

LPL Financial stock traded up $0.90 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $266.32. The company had a trading volume of 394,211 shares, compared to its average volume of 429,477. The stock has a market cap of $19.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.51, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.84. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $179.00 and a 1 year high of $274.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The business has a fifty day moving average of $263.85 and a 200 day moving average of $241.86.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $2.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.55 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 57.68%. The firm's revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $4.21 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 15.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th were paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.79%.

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.