O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Raises Stock Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 10.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 14,182 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,356 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC's holdings in LPL Financial were worth $4,631,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Boston Partners increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,905,541 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,278,454,000 after purchasing an additional 805,637 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,436,831 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $333,581,000 after buying an additional 36,474 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 27.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,275,136 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $296,635,000 after buying an additional 276,166 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $305,747,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in LPL Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $295,982,000. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LPLA traded up $4.55 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $287.86. 2,067,508 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 806,977. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $347.04 and a 200 day moving average of $316.90. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $187.19 and a 1 year high of $384.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 2.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.64.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on LPLA shares. Barclays dropped 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. StockNews.com downgraded LPL Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $435.00 price target on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One research 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 stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $376.33.

Insider Transactions 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 value 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. The trade was a 21.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,663 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,988,907.82. This trade represents a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,465 shares of company stock valued at $12,562,070 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

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.