Russell Investments Group Ltd. Lowers Holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 31.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 65,730 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 29,507 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.09% of LPL Financial worth $21,464,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Alliance grew its position in LPL Financial by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,483 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $484,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Sanchez Wealth Management Group boosted its position in LPL Financial by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Sanchez Wealth Management Group now owns 1,686 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $551,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 916 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $299,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 1,076 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $351,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 3.1% in the 4th 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 period. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

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Insider Activity

In related news, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total transaction of $402,435.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 4,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total value of $10,507,633.78. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,663 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,988,907.82. This represents a 67.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,465 shares of company stock worth $12,562,070. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of LPLA traded up $5.41 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $316.14. 94,182 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 818,865. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 2.16. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $187.19 and a fifty-two week high of $384.04. The business has a 50-day moving average of $338.92 and a 200-day moving average of $320.19.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share (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%. On average, research analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.38%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on LPLA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup lowered their price objective on LPL Financial from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. TD Cowen upgraded LPL Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $277.00 to $413.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of LPL Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, JMP Securities reduced their target price on LPL Financial from $435.00 to $420.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $369.83.

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.