Teacher Retirement System of Texas Increases Stock Holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 37.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 30,778 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 8,408 shares during the quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in LPL Financial were worth $10,069,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of LPLA. Graney & King LLC bought a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Private Trust Co. NA boosted 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 buying an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 63.9% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. City Holding Co. bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Trading Up 2.1%

LPLA traded up $7.80 during trading on Friday, hitting $384.27. 348,551 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 851,480. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $368.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $348.28. The firm has a market cap of $30.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.64. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $187.19 and a 1 year 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 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 business had revenue of $3.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.63 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 46.34% and a net margin of 8.23%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.83 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.31%. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.30%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on LPLA. JMP Securities increased their price target on LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $420.00 to $460.00 in a report on Monday, June 9th. Citigroup downgraded LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $400.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Monday, June 9th. Wall Street Zen downgraded LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on LPL Financial from $330.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $387.69.

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.