681 Shares in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Purchased by WP Advisors LLC

Key Points

• WP Advisors LLC purchased 681 shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. during the 1st quarter, with a total investment of approximately $223,000.
• LPL Financial reported a better-than-expected earnings result of $4.51 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' consensus by $0.30.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, to be paid on August 29th, representing an annual yield of 0.3%.

WP Advisors LLC purchased a new position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 681 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $223,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Millstone Evans Group LLC raised its position in LPL Financial by 123.1% in the first quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 87 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA raised its position in LPL Financial by 234.5% in the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its position in LPL Financial by 63.9% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. City Holding Co. bought a new stake in LPL Financial in the first quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC raised its position in LPL Financial by 116.7% in the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 104 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LPLA has been the topic of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $425.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. TD Cowen downgraded LPL Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $406.00 to $403.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen downgraded LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $420.00 to $460.00 in a report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $490.00 price objective (up previously from $450.00) on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $383.58.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $374.05, for a total value of $561,075.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 19,120 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,151,836. The trade was a 7.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

LPL Financial Trading Up 0.3%

NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $369.84 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 3.22 and a quick ratio of 3.22. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $193.22 and a fifty-two week high of $403.58. The stock's 50-day moving average is $377.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $355.81. The stock has a market cap of $29.59 billion, a PE ratio of 25.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.66.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.21 by $0.30. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 39.80% and a net margin of 7.91%. The company had revenue of $3.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.77 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.88 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 30.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. LPL Financial's payout ratio is 8.21%.

LPL Financial Company 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.

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