Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Makes New $967,000 Investment in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Key Points

• Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new stake in LPL Financial Holdings, purchasing 2,955 shares valued at approximately $967,000 during the first quarter.
• LPL Financial recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30, which will be paid on August 29th, representing a yield of 0.3%.
• Several institutional investors increased their holdings in LPL Financial, with a combined ownership of 95.66% of the company's stock.

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 2,955 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $967,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of LPLA. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 20.5% during the fourth quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 4,441 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,450,000 after acquiring an additional 757 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in LPL Financial by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 14,182 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,631,000 after purchasing an additional 1,356 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 300.5% in the 4th quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,462 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $477,000 after buying an additional 1,097 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,459,942 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $475,946,000 after buying an additional 23,111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in LPL Financial by 57.1% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,115,708 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $364,290,000 after acquiring an additional 405,341 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In related news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $382.63, for a total value of $573,945.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 20,620 shares in the company, valued at $7,889,830.60. This trade represents a 6.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LPLA traded down $0.33 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $374.24. The stock had a trading volume of 292,083 shares, compared to its average volume of 822,579. The stock has a market cap of $29.93 billion, a PE ratio of 25.60, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.66. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $378.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $355.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 2.31 and a current ratio of 2.31. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $187.19 and a one year high of $403.58.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 earnings per share 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 net margin of 7.91% and a return on equity of 47.01%. LPL Financial's quarterly revenue was up 30.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.88 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

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 is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on LPLA shares. JMP Securities raised their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on LPL Financial from $402.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Wall Street Zen lowered LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 14th. TD Cowen downgraded shares of LPL Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their target price for the company from $406.00 to $403.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $490.00 target price (up from $450.00) on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, LPL Financial presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $383.58.

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.