LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA Shares Sold by Epoch Investment Partners Inc.

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. decreased its position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 4.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 462,450 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 20,248 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial accounts for approximately 0.9% of Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. owned 0.58% of LPL Financial worth $165,173,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of LPLA. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in LPL Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 3,650.0% in the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 75 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 550.0% in the fourth quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 78 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. Core Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in LPL Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Pinpoint Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in LPL Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

LPL Financial Stock Up 3.6%

Shares of LPLA opened at $295.66 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 2.56 and a current ratio of 2.56. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $260.15 and a one year high of $403.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.40, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $301.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $329.73.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $5.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.49 by $0.11. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 31.26% and a net margin of 4.93%.The firm had revenue of $4.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.98 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $5.15 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 34.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 22.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 21st. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is presently 10.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on LPLA shares. Barclays boosted their price target on LPL Financial from $369.00 to $412.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. TD Cowen decreased their price target on LPL Financial from $330.00 to $326.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods started coverage on LPL Financial in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $350.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Citizens Jmp reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $500.00 price target on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Monday, April 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $398.86.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In related news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 1,110 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.01, for a total transaction of $366,311.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 19,803 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,535,188.03. The trade was a 5.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

About LPL Financial

LPL Financial (NASDAQ: LPLA) is a U.S.-focused financial services firm that provides brokerage, custodial and advisory platforms to independent financial advisors, registered investment advisers and institutions. Operating primarily as an independent broker-dealer and custodian, the company supports a network of advisors with the operational, compliance and clearing infrastructure needed to manage client accounts and deliver investment advice outside of traditional wirehouse models.

The firm’s product and service offerings include trade execution and clearing, custody services, retirement plan services, model portfolio and advisory platforms, wealth management technology, investment research and product access across equities, fixed income, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and insurance and annuity solutions.