Truist Financial Corp Purchases 6,646 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Truist Financial Corp increased its position in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 4.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 170,848 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 6,646 shares during the quarter. Truist Financial Corp’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $47,718,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 38.8% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 41,850 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,057,000 after buying an additional 11,703 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its stake in LPL Financial by 533.8% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 5,153 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,359,000 after purchasing an additional 4,340 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,648,000. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in shares of LPL Financial by 23.4% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 113,254 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,923,000 after purchasing an additional 21,481 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 394,091 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $110,070,000 after purchasing an additional 20,123 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Price Performance

LPLA stock opened at $231.07 on Thursday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $187.19 and a 1 year high of $289.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 2.16. The stock has a market cap of $17.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $216.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $249.85.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $3.88 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.66 by $0.22. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 52.14% and a net margin of 8.91%. The company had revenue of $2.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.89 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.94 EPS. LPL Financial’s revenue was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 15.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is 9.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on LPLA shares. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on LPL Financial in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $235.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America upgraded LPL Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $268.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $290.00 to $215.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $261.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $275.69.

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.