AGF Management Ltd. Sells 12,454 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

AGF Management Ltd. trimmed its position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 435,056 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 12,454 shares during the period. AGF Management Ltd.’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $142,050,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in LPLA. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in LPL Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $295,982,000. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 24.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,322,571 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $772,930,000 after acquiring an additional 650,675 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 27.6% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,275,136 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $296,635,000 after buying an additional 276,166 shares in the last quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 50.0% during the 3rd quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP now owns 750,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $174,472,000 after buying an additional 250,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 82.0% in the 3rd quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 497,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $115,635,000 after purchasing an additional 223,931 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Stock Down 6.8 %

LPLA stock opened at $311.07 on Tuesday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.19 and a twelve month high of $384.04. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The company has a market cap of $23.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.82. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $353.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $301.03.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. Analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.39%. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is currently 8.55%.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, 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 directly owns 4,075 shares in the company, valued at $1,490,838.75. This trade represents a 21.26 % 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, 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 value of $1,652,001.16. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,538 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,954,837.66. This trade represents a 21.72 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 34,465 shares of company stock worth $12,562,070. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LPLA has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $379.17.

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.