LPL Financial Earnings: Strong Start to the Year; Largest Acquisition for the Company Announced

LPL Financial started the year off with solid results, driven by strong organic net new asset growth in an increasingly uncertain economic backdrop. The company reported first-quarter net income to common shareholders of $319 million, or $4.24 per diluted share, on $1.27 billion of gross profit. Gross profit increased 19% from prior-year results and 4% from last quarter, largely from 16% annualized organic net new asset growth. We don't anticipate making a significant change to our $358 per share fair value estimate for narrow-moat LPL Financial, and we assess shares as being fairly valued at the moment.