LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Upgraded to Hold at StockNews.com

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on LPL Financial from $309.00 to $282.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $303.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of LPL Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $235.00 to $285.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $310.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on LPL Financial from $326.00 to $315.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $284.31.

LPL Financial Trading Up 6.9 %

Shares of LPL Financial stock traded up $18.16 on Thursday, hitting $282.18. 1,597,650 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 737,386. The company has a fifty day moving average of $232.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $248.24. LPL Financial has a one year low of $187.19 and a one year high of $291.67. The company has a market capitalization of $21.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 2.16.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $3.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 52.14% and a net margin of 8.91%. The company’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.74 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that LPL Financial will post 15.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LPL Financial

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 8,675 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,292,000 after acquiring an additional 313 shares during the period. Norden Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the 1st quarter valued at $889,000. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 33.7% during the 1st quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 5,473 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,446,000 after acquiring an additional 1,380 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 14.4% in the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 23,589 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,233,000 after acquiring an additional 2,969 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in LPL Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $208,000. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Company Profile

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.