Handelsbanken Fonder AB Has $4.58 Million Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 21.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 19,681 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,500 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $4,578,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,141,049 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,625,446,000 after purchasing an additional 48,439 shares during the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of LPL Financial by 9.9% during the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,589,793 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $723,329,000 after acquiring an additional 233,242 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 71.9% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,765,230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $466,434,000 after acquiring an additional 738,509 shares during the period. Samlyn Capital LLC boosted its holdings in LPL Financial by 8.0% in the second quarter. Samlyn Capital LLC now owns 1,194,715 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $333,684,000 after acquiring an additional 88,635 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in LPL Financial by 33.2% during the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,103,655 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $291,586,000 after purchasing an additional 275,286 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Price Performance

NASDAQ LPLA opened at $238.71 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 2.16. The stock has a market cap of $17.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.03, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.88. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $217.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $248.76. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $187.19 and a 52-week high of $289.88.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $3.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.66 by $0.22. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.91% and a return on equity of 52.14%. The company had revenue of $2.93 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.94 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 18.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 15.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.50%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $325.00 to $285.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 27th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on LPL Financial from $326.00 to $315.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on LPL Financial from $309.00 to $282.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on LPL Financial in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $235.00 target price on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $274.38.

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.