Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Buys 514 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,212 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 514 shares during the quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $3,918,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 18.9% in the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 3,077 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $731,000 after acquiring an additional 489 shares in the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 13.8% in the third quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 1,852 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $440,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 1.0% in the third quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 11,139 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,647,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 6.6% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 5,528 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,314,000 after acquiring an additional 341 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 2.7% in the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 4,929 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,171,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Stock Up 0.5 %

NASDAQ LPLA traded up $1.32 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $270.79. 480,869 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 533,351. The business’s 50-day moving average is $264.90 and its 200-day moving average is $243.15. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a twelve month low of $179.00 and a twelve month high of $276.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $20.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.83.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.18. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 56.36% and a net margin of 9.71%. The firm had revenue of $2.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.55 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $4.21 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 15.84 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 20th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 9.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at LPL Financial

In other news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 34,807 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.54, for a total transaction of $9,277,457.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 141,810 shares in the company, valued at $37,798,037.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other LPL Financial news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.35, for a total transaction of $2,563,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 137,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,131,229.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 34,807 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.54, for a total value of $9,277,457.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 141,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,798,037.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 60,151 shares of company stock worth $15,911,088 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LPLA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen increased their price target on LPL Financial from $269.00 to $271.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Raymond James initiated coverage on LPL Financial in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. They set an “underperform” rating for the company. Barclays upped their price objective on LPL Financial from $302.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley raised LPL Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $254.00 to $315.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $305.00 price objective on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $276.20.

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.