GSA Capital Partners LLP Grows Stock Position in LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)

GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its stake in shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) by 116.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,978 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,605 shares during the quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP's holdings in LPL Financial were worth $693,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in LPLA. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in LPL Financial by 533.8% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 5,153 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,359,000 after buying an additional 4,340 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in LPL Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,648,000. Raymond James & Associates increased its position in LPL Financial by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 394,091 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $110,070,000 after buying an additional 20,123 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in LPL Financial by 421.7% during the 1st quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 119,772 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,175,000 after buying an additional 96,816 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. increased its position in LPL Financial by 68.2% during the 3rd quarter. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. now owns 217,451 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $50,586,000 after buying an additional 88,196 shares in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on LPL Financial from $326.00 to $315.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on LPL Financial from $309.00 to $282.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. Bank of America raised LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $268.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. JMP Securities reissued a "market outperform" rating and issued a $310.00 price objective on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on LPL Financial from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $286.92.

LPL Financial Price Performance

LPLA stock traded up $0.75 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $314.77. 559,709 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 741,901. The company has a market cap of $23.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.85. The stock's 50 day moving average is $252.22 and its 200 day moving average is $251.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 2.16. LPL Financial Holdings Inc. has a 12-month low of $187.19 and a 12-month high of $322.03.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.69 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $3.11 billion for 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%. LPL Financial's revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.74 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 16.08 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.38%. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.