Board of the Pension Protection Fund Invests $337,000 in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA

Key Points

• The Pension Protection Fund has invested approximately $337,000 to acquire 900 shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. in the second quarter.
• Multiple institutional investors significantly increased their stakes in LPL Financial, including Dodge & Cox, which boosted its position by 224.1%.
• LPL Financial's stock performance includes a 12-month high of $403.58 and a recent quarterly earnings of $4.51 earnings per share, surpassing estimates.

Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 900 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $337,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Dodge & Cox boosted its position in LPL Financial by 224.1% in the first quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 1,523,460 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $498,385,000 after purchasing an additional 1,053,351 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in LPL Financial by 1,453.3% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,038,683 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $339,795,000 after purchasing an additional 971,814 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 786.2% in the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 959,371 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $313,849,000 after buying an additional 851,115 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 550.5% in the 1st quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 759,206 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $248,367,000 after buying an additional 642,503 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Egerton Capital UK LLP boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 238.1% in the 1st quarter. Egerton Capital UK LLP now owns 871,265 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $285,026,000 after buying an additional 613,555 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In related news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 80 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.25, for a total transaction of $28,900.00. Following the sale, the director owned 5,582 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,016,497.50. This represents a 1.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Greg Gates sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $314.42, for a total transaction of $235,815.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 16,870 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,304,265.40. The trade was a 4.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 3,830 shares of company stock worth $1,333,105 in the last three months. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of LPLA stock opened at $315.24 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.56, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.61. 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's 50 day moving average is $347.31 and its 200 day moving average is $353.26. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $242.94 and a 12 month high of $403.58.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 earnings per share (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 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 30.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.88 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio is 8.21%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Wednesday. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of LPL Financial from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on LPL Financial in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $365.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group set a $455.00 price objective on LPL Financial in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $395.85.

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.

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