Clarkston Capital Partners LLC Sells 15,585 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Clarkston Capital Partners LLC lowered its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 1.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 977,030 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 15,585 shares during the period. LPL Financial makes up 4.2% of Clarkston Capital Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $227,286,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its stake in LPL Financial by 533.8% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 5,153 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,359,000 after buying an additional 4,340 shares during the period. Swedbank AB bought a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,648,000. Raymond James & Associates grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 394,091 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $110,070,000 after purchasing an additional 20,123 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 421.7% in the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 119,772 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,175,000 after buying an additional 96,816 shares during the period. Finally, Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 68.2% during the third quarter. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. now owns 217,451 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,586,000 after buying an additional 88,196 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on LPLA. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays raised their price objective on LPL Financial from $273.00 to $311.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on LPL Financial from $326.00 to $315.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $310.00 price target on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $286.92.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LPLA opened at $314.02 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The company has a market capitalization of $23.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.85. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.19 and a 12 month high of $322.03. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $252.22 and a 200-day moving average of $251.23.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.69 by $0.47. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.47% and a net margin of 8.73%. The business had revenue of $3.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.74 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 16.08 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is 9.02%.

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.