Shelton Wealth Management LLC Makes New $1.09 Million Investment in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Shelton Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 3,322 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,085,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in LPL Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Paladin Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the third quarter valued at $34,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the third quarter valued at $43,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its stake in LPL Financial by 32.3% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 385 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $90,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 45.3% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 327 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $91,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on LPLA shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $310.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of LPL Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $288.00 to $397.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted 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. Barclays raised their price objective on LPL Financial from $378.00 to $379.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, LPL Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $351.50.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total transaction of $101,241.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 3,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,301,204.80. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

LPL Financial Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of LPL Financial stock opened at $348.93 on Friday. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 52-week low of $187.19 and a 52-week high of $350.38. The stock has a market cap of $26.13 billion, a PE ratio of 26.24, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.87. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $327.62 and a 200-day moving average of $267.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 2.16.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.69 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $3.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.47% and a net margin of 8.73%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.74 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 16.07 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th were paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.34%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.02%.

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.