LPL Financial Sets IPO Date for Nov. 17, Report Says

After filing its Form S-1 last week, LPL Financial appears poised to take its shares public on Nov. 17, according to a report on Tuesday in Investment News, which cites anonymous sources familiar with the deal.

An LPL Financial spokesperson told AdvisorOne.com in a phone call late Tuesday, “Consistent with our quiet period, we have no comment beyond our public filings.”

Asked about the timing of the IPO, advisor Carlo Panaccione of Navigation Group, an affiliate of LPL in Redwood Shores, Calif., said in a phone interview that he wasn't surprised, "since the company’s been doing a dog and pony show” recently.

“I do have units and like the company,” explained Panaccione, a top producer, who will be gaining some liquidity with the IPO. “I use LPL because I like their programs. The IPO brings validity to what independents do. It’s exciting for the company and hopefully for clients.”

Chip Roame, head of the consultancy Tiburon Strategic Advisors, said in a phone interview, “The timing seems as good as any other.  They likely want to get this done this year, and pre-Thanksgiving is likely better than pre-Christmas. And there may be covenants in their agreement with the private-equity firms that nobody knows.”

Private equity firms Hellman & Friedman LLC and TPG Group each own a 36% stake of LPL Financial. After the IPO, their respective stakes will shrink to about 31.5%, analysts point out, and the company should have some 107 million shares outstanding.

LPL Financial’s amended Form S-1 assumed an IPO price of $28.50 per share for 17,176,195 shares of common stock. The $28.50 price is midway between the $30/share and $27/share range the company said it expected at the time of its offering. At a $30/share price, the 17 million shares — which represent the publicly traded minority stake in the firm — would be valued at $515.28 million.