Kennedy Capital Management LLC Purchases 4,293 Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Kennedy Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 71.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,279 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,293 shares during the quarter. Kennedy Capital Management LLC’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $2,716,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its position in LPL Financial by 66.8% in the fourth quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 9,219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,098,000 after buying an additional 3,691 shares during the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its holdings in LPL Financial by 21.4% in the 4th quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 1,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $387,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 26.9% during the 4th quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 5,661 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,289,000 after purchasing an additional 1,199 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of LPL Financial by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 42,414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,654,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its position in LPL Financial by 15.5% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 34,863 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,965,000 after buying an additional 4,686 shares in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

LPL Financial Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:LPLA traded down $1.46 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $220.12. The stock had a trading volume of 146,546 shares, compared to its average volume of 675,818. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $266.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $261.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.84, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a one year low of $200.18 and a one year high of $289.88. The company has a market capitalization of $16.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.74, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.90.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $3.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.66 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $2.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.89 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 54.38% and a net margin of 8.91%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 18.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.94 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 15.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 9th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 9.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LPLA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America upgraded LPL Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $268.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Raymond James started coverage on LPL Financial in a report on Thursday, April 4th. They issued an “underperform” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley raised shares of LPL Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $254.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on LPL Financial from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, JMP Securities increased their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $286.80.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In related news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 5,677 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $277.31, for a total transaction of $1,574,288.87. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 142,608 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,546,624.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.