MML Investors Services LLC Acquires 1,727 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

MML Investors Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 11.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 16,916 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,727 shares during the quarter. MML Investors Services LLC's holdings in LPL Financial were worth $5,523,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in LPLA. Anchor Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in LPL Financial by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 9,697 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,166,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Alliance lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,483 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $484,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,203 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Sanchez Wealth Management Group increased its holdings in 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 valued at $551,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Mather Group LLC. raised its position in 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 during the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

LPL Financial Stock Up 0.3 %

LPL Financial stock traded up $0.89 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $315.43. The stock had a trading volume of 498,514 shares, compared to its average volume of 828,269. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current 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 stock's 50-day simple moving average is $327.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $324.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.03 billion, a PE ratio of 22.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.64.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) 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 net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 49.41%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LPLA has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com cut LPL Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $414.00 to $365.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group increased 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. Finally, 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 report on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $369.83.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction 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 of the company's stock, valued at $1,490,838.75. The trade was a 21.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total transaction of $10,507,633.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 13,663 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,988,907.82. This represents a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 34,465 shares of company stock valued at $12,562,070. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.