Great Diamond Partners LLC Purchases New Shares in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Great Diamond Partners LLC acquired a new stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 649 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $212,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 24.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,322,571 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $772,930,000 after buying an additional 650,675 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in LPL Financial by 27.6% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,275,136 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $296,635,000 after acquiring an additional 276,166 shares in the last quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 50.0% during the 3rd quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP now owns 750,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $174,472,000 after acquiring an additional 250,000 shares during the period. Maverick Capital Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 82.0% during the 3rd quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 497,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $115,635,000 after purchasing an additional 223,931 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Azora Capital LP increased its position in shares of LPL Financial by 52.2% in the third quarter. Azora Capital LP now owns 643,544 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $149,708,000 after purchasing an additional 220,622 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at LPL Financial

In other news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total value of $101,241.70. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,301,204.80. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LPLA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $309.00 to $282.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. TD Cowen raised shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $277.00 to $413.00 in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group upped their target price on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on LPL Financial from $271.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $370.50.

LPL Financial Price Performance

LPL Financial stock opened at $366.89 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $27.47 billion, a PE ratio of 27.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $335.66 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $273.82. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12 month low of $187.19 and a 12 month high of $375.74.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.01 by $0.24. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.73% and a return on equity of 49.47%. Analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 16.17 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is presently 9.02%.

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.