Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Buys 56,557 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA

Key Points

• Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC has significantly increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 1,013.4%, owning approximately 62,138 shares valued at $20.3 million.
• LPL Financial's recent earnings report showed a profit of $4.51 per share, exceeding expectations, with a 30.8% year-over-year revenue growth.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30, with a yield of 0.3% and a low payout ratio of 8.21%.

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 1,013.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 62,138 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 56,557 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC owned 0.08% of LPL Financial worth $20,328,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of LPLA. Millstone Evans Group LLC increased its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 123.1% in the first quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 87 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA grew its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. City Holding Co. purchased a new position in LPL Financial during the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC grew its stake in LPL Financial by 116.7% during the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 104 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at LPL Financial

In other news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the company'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 sale, 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LPLA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted 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. TD Cowen cut 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. Citigroup cut shares of LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $80.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $420.00 to $460.00 in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $402.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. 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's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $383.58.

LPL Financial Trading Down 1.4%

NASDAQ LPLA traded down $4.98 during trading on Friday, hitting $350.98. The company had a trading volume of 506,950 shares, compared to its average volume of 906,281. 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 one year low of $204.41 and a one year high of $403.58. The company has a market cap of $28.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.66. The company's fifty day moving average is $375.53 and its 200-day moving average is $355.89.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 net margin of 7.91% and a return on equity of 39.80%. The company's revenue was up 30.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.88 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $0.30 dividend. 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 currently 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.