Westfield Capital Management Co. LP Purchases 124,180 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Key Points

• Westfield Capital Management Co. LP increased its stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. by 17.6% during the first quarter, acquiring 124,180 shares to own a total of 830,099 shares.
• LPL Financial recently posted strong quarterly earnings, reporting $4.51 earnings per share, exceeding analyst expectations and showing a 30.8% year-over-year revenue increase.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, with an annualized yield of 0.3%, to be paid on August 29th to shareholders on record as of August 15th.

Westfield Capital Management Co. LP boosted its holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 17.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 830,099 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 124,180 shares during the period. LPL Financial makes up 1.3% of Westfield Capital Management Co. LP's portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP owned 1.05% of LPL Financial worth $271,559,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of LPLA. Millstone Evans Group LLC increased its position 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 valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 234.5% during the 1st quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 63.9% during 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 in the last quarter. City Holding Co. bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 116.7% during the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 104 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on LPLA. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $420.00 to $460.00 in a research note on Monday, June 9th. TD Cowen cut shares of LPL Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $406.00 to $403.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $425.00 to $435.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $460.00 to $463.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, JMP Securities lifted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $383.58.

LPL Financial Stock Up 0.3%

NASDAQ:LPLA traded up $0.99 on Friday, reaching $369.84. 278,698 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 817,931. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $377.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $355.70. The company has a current ratio of 3.22, a quick ratio of 2.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The company has a market capitalization of $29.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.25, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.66. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $193.22 and a 12 month high of $403.58.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 30.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.88 EPS. Equities analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. LPL Financial's payout ratio is 8.21%.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $374.05, for a total value of $561,075.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 19,120 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,151,836. This trade represents a 7.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

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.