2,926 Shares in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Acquired by Sowell Financial Services LLC

Sowell Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 2,926 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $957,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Boston Partners lifted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,905,541 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,278,454,000 after acquiring an additional 805,637 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in LPL Financial by 20.6% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,050,529 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $996,032,000 after purchasing an additional 522,032 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its position in LPL Financial by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,660,736 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $868,757,000 after purchasing an additional 57,485 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in LPL Financial by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,459,942 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $475,946,000 after buying an additional 23,111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 57.1% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,115,708 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $364,290,000 after buying an additional 405,341 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on LPLA. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $405.00 to $342.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. JMP Securities upped their target price on LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $420.00 to $460.00 in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Barclays boosted their price target on LPL Financial from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on LPL Financial from $330.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $387.69.

LPL Financial Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of LPL Financial stock traded up $1.28 on Thursday, hitting $379.29. The stock had a trading volume of 475,356 shares, compared to its average volume of 837,970. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $353.23 and a 200 day moving average of $344.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.25, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.67. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $187.19 and a twelve month high of $390.23. 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 (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 the consensus estimate of $4.54 by $0.61. The firm had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.63 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.23% and a return on equity of 46.34%. The company's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.83 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th were issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.32%. LPL Financial's payout ratio is 8.30%.

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.