Artemis Investment Management LLP Grows Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA

Key Points

• Artemis Investment Management LLP increased its stake in LPL Financial by 16.7%, buying an additional 9,036 shares to hold 63,268 shares worth about $22.6 million (≈0.08% of the company).
• LPL reported first-quarter adjusted EPS of $5.60 (beating estimates), saw advisory assets surge ~42% YoY to help lift total client assets to about $2.3 trillion, and resumed shareholder-friendly actions including ~$125M in planned buybacks and a $0.30 quarterly dividend.
• Insiders have been net sellers (8,569 shares, ~$2.72M in the last three months), the stock opened down ~4.6% at $318.63, and analysts hold a consensus Moderate Buy rating with a ~$398.86 price target.

Artemis Investment Management LLP lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 16.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 63,268 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 9,036 shares during the quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP owned about 0.08% of LPL Financial worth $22,597,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LPLA. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in LPL Financial by 42.7% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,525 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,153,000 after acquiring an additional 1,055 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in LPL Financial by 0.5% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 209,126 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $68,414,000 after purchasing an additional 1,089 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP purchased a new stake in LPL Financial during the first quarter worth $1,636,000. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its position in LPL Financial by 12.2% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 4,360 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,426,000 after purchasing an additional 473 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the first quarter valued at $121,000. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on LPLA shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Monday. TD Cowen dropped their target price on LPL Financial from $330.00 to $326.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Barclays upped their target price on LPL Financial from $369.00 to $412.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on LPL Financial from $464.00 to $383.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods assumed coverage on LPL Financial in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $350.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $398.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Matthew Enyedi sold 2,109 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.15, for a total value of $675,196.35. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 14,121 shares in the company, valued at $4,520,838.15. The trade was a 12.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 1,581 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $320.50, for a total value of $506,710.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 21,382 shares in the company, valued at $6,852,931. The trade was a 6.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 8,569 shares of company stock worth $2,720,733 in the last three months. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

LPL Financial Stock Down 4.6%

Shares of LPLA stock opened at $318.63 on Friday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $281.51 and a 1 year high of $403.58. The stock has a market cap of $25.55 billion, a PE ratio of 28.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.57. The business's fifty day moving average is $308.70 and its 200-day moving average is $342.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 2.45 and a current ratio of 2.45.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $5.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.49 by $0.11. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 32.06% and a net margin of 4.93%.The company had revenue of $4.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.98 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $5.15 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 34.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 21st will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 21st. LPL Financial's payout ratio is presently 10.90%.

Key Headlines Impacting LPL Financial

Here are the key news stories impacting LPL Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat on the top and bottom line — adjusted EPS of $5.60 and revenue of $4.94B, above consensus; gross profit and adjusted pre-tax income rose year-over-year, supporting profitability. LPL Financial Announces First-Quarter 2026 Results
• Positive Sentiment: Advisory assets and total client assets expanded materially (advisory assets +42% YoY; total client assets $2.3T), increasing recurring-fee exposure and long-term revenue mix. LPLA Q1 Earnings Beat — Zacks
• Positive Sentiment: Capital returns and shareholder-friendly actions: company resumed share repurchases (~$125M planned for Q2) and declared a quarterly dividend ($0.30/share), which can support valuation. LPL Q1 Slide Deck / Press Release
• Neutral Sentiment: JPMorgan slightly trimmed its price target (from $396 to $390) but kept an Overweight rating, signaling continued analyst conviction despite trimming assumptions. Benzinga — JPMorgan Price Target
• Neutral Sentiment: Full earnings call/transcript and analyst notes are available for deeper read-through of assumptions and guidance changes. Earnings Call Transcript — Seeking Alpha
• Negative Sentiment: Recruited assets plunged (~$17B; down ~55% YoY), and organic net new assets were modest ($21B), raising concerns about forward growth momentum for AUM-driven fees. This softness is a key driver of the intra-day decline. Quiver Quant — Asset Metrics & Price Reaction
• Negative Sentiment: Management lowered the estimated Commonwealth run‑rate EBITDA (to ~$410M from $425M) and flagged higher Core G&A, which tempers margin upside and near-term cash flow expectations. LPL Financial Q1 Release — GlobeNewswire
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction is amplified by visible insider selling activity reported in recent months (multiple insiders selling, few purchases), which can add to near-term selling pressure. Quiver Quant — Insider & Institutional Activity

LPL Financial Profile

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.

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