LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA Shares Acquired by Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management

Key Points

• Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management increased its stake in LPL Financial Holdings by 16% in Q1, owning 7,988 shares valued at approximately $2.61 million.
• Institutional investors now hold 95.66% of LPL Financial's stock, indicating strong institutional confidence in the company.
• LPL Financial reported strong earnings, with a 30.8% year-over-year revenue increase and earnings per share of $4.51, exceeding analysts' expectations.

Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management lifted its position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 16.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 7,988 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,104 shares during the period. Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management's holdings in LPL Financial were worth $2,613,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 123.1% during the first quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 87 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 234.5% during the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 63.9% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. Finally, City Holding Co. purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $490.00 price target (up previously from $450.00) on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. TD Cowen downgraded shares of 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. Barclays increased their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $460.00 to $463.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 14th. Finally, JMP Securities increased their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $383.58.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $374.05, for a total transaction of $561,075.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 19,120 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,151,836. This trade represents a 7.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.70% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of LPL Financial stock traded down $0.35 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $364.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 249,319 shares, compared to its average volume of 670,501. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1-year low of $204.41 and a 1-year high of $403.58. The business has a fifty day moving average of $371.97 and a 200 day moving average of $355.47. The company has a market capitalization of $29.16 billion, a PE ratio of 24.93, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a quick ratio of 3.22, a current ratio of 3.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.21 by $0.30. LPL Financial had a net margin of 7.91% and a return on equity of 39.80%. The company had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.88 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 30.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

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