Norges Bank Buys Shares of 1,072,919 LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA

Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 1,072,919 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $402,312,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.34% of LPL Financial at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in LPL Financial during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in LPL Financial by 116.2% in the 2nd quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 80 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. Maseco LLP purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Smithfield Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 29.4% during the second quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 154 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In other news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 80 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.25, for a total transaction of $28,900.00. Following the sale, the director owned 5,582 shares in the company, valued at $2,016,497.50. This trade represents a 1.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $376.43, for a total transaction of $564,645.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 15,370 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,785,729.10. The trade was a 8.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 3,830 shares of company stock valued at $1,336,675 in the last ninety days. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on LPLA. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $411.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Citizens Jmp lifted their target price on LPL Financial from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. UBS Group set a $455.00 price target on LPL Financial in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. TD Cowen upped their price target on LPL Financial from $356.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on LPL Financial from $463.00 to $438.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $429.00.

LPL Financial Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ LPLA opened at $356.05 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $345.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $361.46. The company has a current ratio of 2.60, a quick ratio of 2.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $262.83 and a 12-month high of $403.58. The company has a market cap of $28.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.79, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.63.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $5.20 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.49 by $0.71. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 36.80% and a net margin of 5.35%.The company had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.16 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 46.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 13th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 13th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.05%.

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.