Bank of Nova Scotia Makes New Investment in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Key Points

• The Bank of Nova Scotia has invested approximately $941,000 in LPL Financial Holdings Inc., acquiring 2,876 shares of the company in the first quarter.
• LPL Financial reported a quarterly EPS of $4.51, exceeding analysts' expectations, with revenue up 30.8% year-over-year at $3.84 billion.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, with an annualized yield of 0.3%, to be paid on August 29th.

Bank of Nova Scotia bought a new position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 2,876 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $941,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. R Squared Ltd increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 158.3% in the first quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 620 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $203,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares during the period. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund raised its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 110.0% in the 1st quarter. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund now owns 2,100 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $687,000 after acquiring an additional 1,100 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 45.2% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 7,110 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,326,000 after acquiring an additional 2,213 shares during the last quarter. Pamalican Asset Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the first quarter worth about $16,357,000. Finally, IFG Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of LPL Financial by 10.9% in the first quarter. IFG Advisory LLC now owns 813 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $7,151,836. The trade was a 7.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on LPLA. Citigroup cut LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $80.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $425.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 14th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $460.00 to $463.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, TD Cowen lowered shares of LPL Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price target for the company from $406.00 to $403.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, LPL Financial has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $383.58.

LPL Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ:LPLA traded up $0.99 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $369.84. The stock had a trading volume of 528,160 shares, compared to its average volume of 920,436. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.59 billion, a PE ratio of 25.30, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.66. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $193.22 and a 52 week high of $403.58. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $377.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $355.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 2.31 and a current ratio of 3.22.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.21 by $0.30. LPL Financial had a net margin of 7.91% and a return on equity of 39.80%. The business 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 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 30.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. LPL Financial's dividend 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.