Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $1.14 Million Stock Holdings in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lessened its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) by 12.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,479 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 495 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in LPL Financial were worth $1,138,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Millstone Evans Group LLC boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 123.1% in the first quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 87 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 234.5% in the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 63.9% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. City Holding Co. bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the first quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 116.7% in the first quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 104 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

LPL Financial stock opened at $369.84 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 3.22 and a quick ratio of 3.22. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $377.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $355.81. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $193.22 and a 52-week high of $403.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.30, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 0.66.

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

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is currently 8.21%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $374.05, for a total value of $561,075.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 19,120 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,151,836. The trade was a 7.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.70% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LPLA has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $490.00 price objective (up from $450.00) on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on LPL Financial from $402.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. TD Cowen cut LPL Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $406.00 to $403.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on LPL Financial from $425.00 to $435.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut LPL Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $383.58.

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.