Hsbc Holdings PLC Reduces Stock Holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Hsbc Holdings PLC lessened its position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 29.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 111,345 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 46,444 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned approximately 0.15% of LPL Financial worth $36,406,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased 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 in the last quarter. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $59,000. Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in LPL Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in LPL Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $78,000. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In related news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total transaction of $10,507,633.78. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,663 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,988,907.82. This trade represents a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through 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 stock was sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total value of $402,435.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 4,075 shares of the company’s stock, 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 sold 34,465 shares of company stock valued at $12,562,070 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JMP Securities cut their price target on LPL Financial from $435.00 to $420.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $369.83.

LPL Financial Price Performance

Shares of LPL Financial stock opened at $314.54 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.40, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $327.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $323.48. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.19 and a twelve month high of $384.04.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.01 by $0.24. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.41% and a net margin of 8.55%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.38%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.55%.

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.