LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA Stock Holdings Boosted by Azora Capital LP

Azora Capital LP raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 6.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 472,352 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 29,918 shares during the period. LPL Financial makes up 8.0% of Azora Capital LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its biggest holding. Azora Capital LP owned 0.59% of LPL Financial worth $177,118,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lifted its position in LPL Financial by 9.9% in the second quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 301 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $113,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the period. Compass Financial Services Inc lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 14.5% in the 1st quarter. Compass Financial Services Inc now owns 229 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 29 shares during the period. Camden National Bank grew its holdings in LPL Financial by 3.1% during the second quarter. Camden National Bank now owns 967 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $363,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC now owns 804 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $302,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Magnolia Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Magnolia Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $623,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on LPLA. JMP Securities set a $475.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Friday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $421.00 price objective on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Friday, October 31st. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Friday, October 31st. Raymond James Financial raised LPL Financial from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Citigroup reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Friday, October 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $429.00.

LPL Financial Price Performance

LPLA stock opened at $374.71 on Wednesday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $262.83 and a 52-week high of $403.58. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $348.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $360.55. The company has a quick ratio of 2.60, a current ratio of 2.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.60.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $5.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.49 by $0.71. The firm had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.08 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 36.80% and a net margin of 5.35%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 46.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.16 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 13th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 13th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is currently 11.05%.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In related news, Director Greg Gates sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $370.97, for a total value of $278,227.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 14,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,423,581.40. This trade represents a 4.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 80 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $352.48, for a total value of $28,198.40. Following the sale, the director directly owned 5,502 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,939,344.96. This trade represents a 1.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 8,138 shares of company stock worth $2,983,353 in the last ninety days. 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.