Cresset Asset Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA

Cresset Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 9.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 804 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 69 shares during the quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $263,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. DAVENPORT & Co LLC grew its position in LPL Financial by 8.9% in the first quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 1,918 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $627,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in LPL Financial by 195.1% during the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 3,341 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,093,000 after acquiring an additional 2,209 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 8.8% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,304,780 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $426,846,000 after acquiring an additional 105,665 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 3.8% during the first quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 5,875 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,922,000 after buying an additional 213 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 2,319.1% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,137 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $372,000 after buying an additional 1,090 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on LPLA. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $490.00 price objective (up previously from $450.00) on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $460.00 to $463.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $402.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of LPL Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $420.00 to $460.00 in a report on Monday, June 9th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded shares of LPL Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $80.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $383.58.

LPL Financial Price Performance

Shares of LPLA opened at $367.30 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 3.22 and a current ratio of 3.22. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $372.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $355.60. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $204.41 and a fifty-two week high of $403.58. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.39 billion, a PE ratio of 25.12, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.66.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.21 by $0.30. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 39.80% and a net margin of 7.91%.The firm had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.88 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 30.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.21%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $7,151,836. This represents a 7.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

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.