LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Shares Bought by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC raised its position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 195.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,341 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 2,209 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in LPL Financial were worth $1,093,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Anchor Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 9,697 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,166,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC boosted its holdings in LPL Financial by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 505 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $165,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Alliance boosted its holdings in LPL Financial by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 1,483 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $484,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in LPL Financial by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,203 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sanchez Wealth Management Group boosted its stake in LPL Financial by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Sanchez Wealth Management Group now owns 1,686 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $551,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $365.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on LPL Financial from $330.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on LPL Financial from $405.00 to $342.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, JMP Securities lifted their target price on LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, LPL Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $377.50.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of LPLA stock opened at $388.96 on Friday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $187.19 and a 52-week high of $390.23. The stock has a market cap of $31.11 billion, a PE ratio of 27.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.67. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $341.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $341.54. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.54 by $0.61. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.41% and a net margin of 8.55%. The company had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.63 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.83 earnings per share. LPL Financial's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.31%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.30%.

LPL Financial Company 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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