SCS Capital Management LLC Invests $60.14 Million in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. $LPLA

SCS Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 213,511 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $60,142,000. LPL Financial accounts for about 0.6% of SCS Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. SCS Capital Management LLC owned about 0.27% of LPL Financial at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC bought a new position in LPL Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $450,493,000. M&T Bank Corp lifted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 27,955.5% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,141,019 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $407,538,000 after purchasing an additional 1,136,952 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $371,616,000. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 37.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,625,357 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,294,869,000 after purchasing an additional 996,806 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 4,435.2% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 747,086 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $210,439,000 after purchasing an additional 730,613 shares during the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Matthew Enyedi sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $352.72, for a total transaction of $352,720.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 13,121 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,628,039.12. This represents a 7.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 308 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total transaction of $94,248.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 6,415 shares in the company, valued at $1,962,990. This trade represents a 4.58% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LPLA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $454.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $330.00 to $372.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $365.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on LPL Financial from $300.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $406.69.

LPL Financial Price Performance

LPL Financial stock opened at $370.67 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.56, a PEG ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.48. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $260.15 and a 52-week high of $400.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 2.39 and a current ratio of 2.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $319.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $315.91.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $5.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.39 by $0.45. LPL Financial had a net margin of 5.13% and a return on equity of 32.20%. The company had revenue of $5.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.51 EPS. LPL Financial’s revenue for the quarter was up 35.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 24.09 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.57%.

About LPL Financial

LPL Financial (NASDAQ: LPLA) is a U.S.-focused financial services firm that provides brokerage, custodial and advisory platforms to independent financial advisors, registered investment advisers and institutions. Operating primarily as an independent broker-dealer and custodian, the company supports a network of advisors with the operational, compliance and clearing infrastructure needed to manage client accounts and deliver investment advice outside of traditional wirehouse models.

The firm’s product and service offerings include trade execution and clearing, custody services, retirement plan services, model portfolio and advisory platforms, wealth management technology, investment research and product access across equities, fixed income, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and insurance and annuity solutions.