Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC trimmed its stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 8.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 38,568 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,550 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned 0.05% of LPL Financial worth $12,593,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LPLA. Wealth Alliance boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,483 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $484,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Sanchez Wealth Management Group lifted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Sanchez Wealth Management Group now owns 1,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $551,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. increased its position in LPL Financial by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 916 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $299,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 1,076 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $351,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC increased its position in LPL Financial by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,352 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $441,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ LPLA opened at $327.14 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $351.48 and a 200-day simple moving average of $313.38. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.19 and a twelve month high of $384.04. 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 stock has a market cap of $24.40 billion, a PE ratio of 23.30, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.82.

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

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.37%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.55%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 4,588 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was 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 owns 16,538 shares in the company, valued at $5,954,837.66. This trade represents a 21.72 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total value of $402,435.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,465 shares of company stock worth $12,562,070. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on LPLA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. TD Cowen upgraded shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $277.00 to $413.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $379.17.

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.