LPL Financial LLC Takes $8.73 Million Position in Graham Holdings (NYSE:GHC)

LPL Financial LLC acquired a new position in Graham Holdings (NYSE:GHC) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 10,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,726,000. LPL Financial LLC owned approximately 0.23% of Graham as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Graham by 55.0% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 31 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in Graham by 36.5% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 142 shares of the company’s stock worth $124,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in Graham by 44.0% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 144 shares of the company’s stock worth $126,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. increased its position in Graham by 30.0% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 182 shares of the company’s stock valued at $159,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, Empirical Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Graham in the 4th quarter valued at about $204,000. 93.16% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Graham news, CAO Marcel A. Snyman sold 159 shares of Graham stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $881.30, for a total value of $140,126.70. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 442 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $389,534.60. The trade was a 26.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 20.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Graham Trading Down 1.9 %

GHC opened at $927.50 on Friday. Graham Holdings has a 12 month low of $683.00 and a 12 month high of $1,003.53. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $946.12 and a 200-day moving average price of $896.85. The firm has a market cap of $4.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.16 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Graham Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be given a $1.80 dividend. This represents a $7.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. Graham’s payout ratio is currently 4.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Graham from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, March 29th.

Graham Profile

Graham Holdings Company, through its subsidiaries, operates as a diversified education and media company in the United States and internationally. It provides test preparation services and materials; professional training and exam preparation for professional certifications and licensures; and non-academic operations support services to the Purdue University Global; operations support services for online courses and programs; training and test preparation services for accounting and financial services professionals; English-language training, academic preparation programs, and test preparation for English proficiency exams; and A-level examination preparation services, as well as operates colleges, business school, higher education institution, and an online learning institution.