Moran Wealth Management LLC Grows Holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA

Moran Wealth Management LLC raised its position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,648 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $993,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of LPLA. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 33.3% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 476 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $156,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in shares of LPL Financial by 1,395.5% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 658 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $215,000 after purchasing an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 8,017 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,623,000 after purchasing an additional 552 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the 1st quarter worth about $396,000. Finally, Sowell Financial Services LLC bought a new position in LPL Financial during the first quarter valued at about $957,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on LPLA shares. Rothschild Redb lowered shares of LPL Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $425.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on LPL Financial in a research note on Friday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $405.00 price objective on the stock. Raymond James Financial raised LPL Financial from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on LPL Financial from $402.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, LPL Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $395.85.

LPL Financial Trading Up 2.6%

Shares of LPLA stock opened at $329.25 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.52, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.61. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $344.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $352.88. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 1 year low of $252.24 and a 1 year high of $403.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 3.22 and a quick ratio of 3.22.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.21 by $0.30. The company had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.77 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 39.80% and a net margin of 7.91%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 30.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.88 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th were given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 15th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.21%.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 80 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $361.25, for a total value of $28,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 5,582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,016,497.50. This trade represents a 1.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $338.21, for a total transaction of $507,315.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 17,620 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,959,260.20. The trade was a 7.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 3,830 shares of company stock valued at $1,333,105. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.