DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main Has $1.42 Million Stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main decreased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 23.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,343 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,316 shares during the quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $1,418,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 27.6% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,275,136 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $296,635,000 after purchasing an additional 276,166 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 6,416 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,094,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. TT International Asset Management LTD lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. TT International Asset Management LTD now owns 12,043 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,932,000 after purchasing an additional 777 shares during the last quarter. Winthrop Advisory Group LLC lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Winthrop Advisory Group LLC now owns 20,954 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,842,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 1,578 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $521,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. 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 stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.07, for a total transaction of $1,652,001.16. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,538 shares in the company, valued at $5,954,837.66. This trade represents a 21.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total transaction of $402,435.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,075 shares in the company, valued at $1,490,838.75. The trade was 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 company insiders.

LPL Financial Stock Up 6.3%

LPLA stock opened at $360.42 on Monday. 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 company’s 50 day moving average is $320.64 and its 200 day moving average is $329.85. The stock has a market cap of $28.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.65. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $187.19 and a 1-year high of $384.04.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) 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 company had revenue of $3.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.63 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 49.41%. LPL Financial’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.83 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS 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 given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.30%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on LPLA shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective 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. UBS Group upped their price target on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays decreased their price target on LPL Financial from $414.00 to $365.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Citigroup decreased their price target on LPL Financial from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, JMP Securities upped their price target on LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $371.50.

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.