NewEdge Wealth LLC Buys 38,839 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

NewEdge Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 228.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 55,827 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 38,839 shares during the period. NewEdge Wealth LLC owned about 0.07% of LPL Financial worth $12,707,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. Smithfield Trust Co increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 164.4% during the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 119 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. First Manhattan Co. purchased a new stake in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Quarry LP increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 220.4% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 173 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC purchased a new stake in LPL Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, First Capital Advisors Group LLC. purchased a new stake in LPL Financial during the second quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

LPLA stock traded down $2.20 during trading on Friday, reaching $261.12. The company had a trading volume of 563,295 shares, compared to its average volume of 540,487. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $261.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $239.97. The company has a market cap of $19.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.77. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $179.00 and a twelve month high of $274.35.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.51 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.33 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $2.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.55 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 57.68%. LPL Financial's revenue for the quarter was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $4.21 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 15.57 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 11th. LPL Financial's payout ratio is 8.79%.

Insider Buying and Selling at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, Director Kabir Sethi sold 1,300 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.50, for a total transaction of $346,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 10,245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,730,292.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Kabir Sethi sold 1,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.50, for a total value of $346,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,730,292.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.35, for a total transaction of $2,563,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 137,044 shares of the company's stock, valued at $35,131,229.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 60,151 shares of company stock worth $15,911,088. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $266.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised shares of LPL Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their target price for the company from $254.00 to $315.00 in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $260.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Raymond James began coverage on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. They issued an "underperform" rating for the company. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $302.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $268.36.

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.

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