LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Shares Bought by Teacher Retirement System of Texas

Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 37.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 30,778 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 8,408 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas' holdings in LPL Financial were worth $10,069,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Bank of Montreal Can raised its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 46.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 59,910 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $19,561,000 after buying an additional 19,126 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 335,749 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $109,625,000 after buying an additional 13,936 shares during the period. DAVENPORT & Co LLC raised its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 8.9% in the first quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 1,918 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $627,000 after buying an additional 156 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 195.1% in the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 3,341 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,093,000 after buying an additional 2,209 shares during the period. Finally, Amalgamated Bank raised its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 3.8% in the first quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 5,875 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,922,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at LPL Financial

In other news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $382.63, for a total value of $573,945.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 20,620 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,889,830.60. This trade represents a 6.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

LPL Financial Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ LPLA traded down $2.70 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $380.90. 685,485 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 852,871. The company has a quick ratio of 2.31, a current ratio of 2.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82. The company has a market cap of $30.46 billion, a PE ratio of 26.36, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.64. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.19 and a 12 month high of $390.23. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $372.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $349.25.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 46.34% and a net margin of 8.23%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.83 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on LPLA. TD Cowen reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $403.00 price target (down from $406.00) on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Wednesday. Barclays raised their price objective on LPL Financial from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 9th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $420.00 to $460.00 in a report on Monday, June 9th. JMP Securities raised their price objective on LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, LPL Financial currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $362.31.

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.