Wellington Management Group LLP Sells 76,487 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Wellington Management Group LLP lowered its position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 33.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 150,670 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 76,487 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP owned about 0.20% of LPL Financial worth $49,195,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in LPL Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in LPL Financial by 45.3% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 138 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in LPL Financial during the 4th quarter worth $59,000. Compass Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in LPL Financial during the 4th quarter worth $65,000. Finally, R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth $78,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on LPLA shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on LPL Financial from $405.00 to $342.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com downgraded LPL Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. UBS Group boosted their target price on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Barclays lowered their target price on LPL Financial from $414.00 to $365.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded LPL Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $277.00 to $413.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $369.83.

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Insider Buying and Selling

In other LPL Financial news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 13,663 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,988,907.82. The trade was a 67.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the business's 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. The trade was a 21.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 34,465 shares of company stock worth $12,562,070. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Stock Down 5.3 %

Shares of LPLA traded down $16.75 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $302.14. The stock had a trading volume of 252,019 shares, compared to its average volume of 816,720. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $342.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $317.89. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.19 and a twelve month high of $384.04. The firm has a market cap of $22.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.50, 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 (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last posted 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%. On average, analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.40%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial's payout ratio is currently 8.55%.

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.