LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Shares Acquired by GAMMA Investing LLC

GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 71.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 357 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $117,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of LPLA. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in LPL Financial during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Paladin Wealth LLC purchased a new position in LPL Financial during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in LPL Financial in the third quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in LPL Financial by 32.3% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 385 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $90,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on LPLA shares. Citigroup upped their price objective on LPL Financial from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. TD Cowen raised shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $277.00 to $413.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group upgraded shares of LPL Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $390.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of LPL Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $288.00 to $397.00 in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $271.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $345.17.

Insider Activity

In other LPL Financial news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total transaction of $101,241.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 3,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,301,204.80. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

LPL Financial Stock Down 0.7 %

LPL Financial stock opened at $333.42 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 2.16. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $187.19 and a one year high of $344.86. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $321.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $264.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.87.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.69 by $0.47. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.47% and a net margin of 8.73%. The company had revenue of $3.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.74 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 16.1 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.36%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.02%.

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.