2,132 Shares in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Acquired by ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V.

Key Points

• ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. has acquired a new stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc., purchasing 2,132 shares valued at approximately $697,000 during the first quarter.
• Several hedge funds have significantly increased their holdings in LPL Financial, with Millstone Evans Group LLC boosting its stake by 123.1% and Private Trust Co. NA by 234.5%.
• Equities analysts have offered mixed ratings on LPL Financial, with target prices ranging from $80.00 to $460.00, indicating varied perspectives on the stock's performance.

ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,132 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $697,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 46.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 59,910 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $19,561,000 after acquiring an additional 19,126 shares in the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 8.9% in the first quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 1,918 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $627,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 195.1% in the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 3,341 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,093,000 after acquiring an additional 2,209 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 3.8% in the first quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 5,875 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,922,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 2,319.1% in the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,137 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $372,000 after acquiring an additional 1,090 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In related news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the 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 transaction, the director directly owned 19,120 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,151,836. This represents a 7.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on LPLA shares. TD Cowen cut LPL Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $406.00 to $403.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. 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 research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen cut LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 14th. Citigroup cut LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on LPL Financial from $425.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $383.58.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

LPLA traded down $2.08 during trading on Thursday, reaching $353.72. 458,355 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 817,863. The stock has a market cap of $28.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.26, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.66. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $376.77 and a 200 day moving average of $356.00. The company has a current ratio of 3.22, a quick ratio of 3.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $204.41 and a 52 week high of $403.58.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.21 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.77 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 39.80% and a net margin of 7.91%. The firm's revenue was up 30.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.88 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

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

LPL Financial 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.