LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA Stock Position Lifted by APG Asset Management N.V.

Key Points

• APG Asset Management N.V. significantly increased its stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. by 478.1%, acquiring a total of 257,260 shares, worth approximately $77.9 million.
• LPL Financial reported an EPS of $4.51 for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, with revenues reaching $3.84 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, indicating a dividend yield of 0.3% and a payout ratio of 8.21%.

APG Asset Management N.V. grew its holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 478.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 257,260 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 212,760 shares during the period. APG Asset Management N.V. owned 0.32% of LPL Financial worth $77,912,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in LPL Financial by 1,453.3% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,038,683 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $339,795,000 after purchasing an additional 971,814 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in LPL Financial by 786.2% in the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 959,371 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $313,849,000 after purchasing an additional 851,115 shares in the last quarter. Egerton Capital UK LLP raised its holdings in LPL Financial by 238.1% during the first quarter. Egerton Capital UK LLP now owns 871,265 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $285,026,000 after purchasing an additional 613,555 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in LPL Financial by 20.6% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,050,529 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $996,032,000 after purchasing an additional 522,032 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in LPL Financial by 337.1% during the first quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 658,593 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $215,452,000 after purchasing an additional 507,923 shares in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on LPLA shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 14th. JMP Securities lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Citigroup cut shares of LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $80.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $490.00 target price (up previously from $450.00) on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, TD Cowen downgraded LPL Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $406.00 to $403.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $383.58.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $374.05, for a total transaction of $561,075.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 19,120 shares in the company, valued at $7,151,836. The trade was a 7.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Stock Up 1.9%

NASDAQ:LPLA traded up $6.87 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $367.30. The company had a trading volume of 824,903 shares, compared to its average volume of 920,486. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $204.41 and a 1 year high of $403.58. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $372.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $355.60. The company has a current ratio of 3.22, a quick ratio of 3.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.95, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.66.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.21 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $3.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.77 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 39.80% and a net margin of 7.91%.LPL Financial's revenue for the quarter was up 30.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.88 EPS. Equities 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. LPL Financial's payout ratio is presently 8.21%.

About LPL Financial

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.