LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Given New $420.00 Price Target at UBS Group

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) had its price target boosted by UBS Group from $390.00 to $420.00 in a research report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

LPLA has been the topic of a number of other research reports. TD Cowen upgraded shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $277.00 to $413.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on LPL Financial from $271.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com upgraded LPL Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 9th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $370.50.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of LPLA opened at $366.89 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $335.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $273.82. LPL Financial has a 12 month low of $187.19 and a 12 month high of $375.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.87.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.01 by $0.24. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.47% and a net margin of 8.73%. As a group, analysts predict that LPL Financial will post 16.17 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.33%. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is 9.02%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,301,204.80. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 24.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,322,571 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $772,930,000 after buying an additional 650,675 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in LPL Financial by 27.6% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,275,136 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $296,635,000 after acquiring an additional 276,166 shares during the period. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP boosted its stake in LPL Financial by 50.0% in the third quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP now owns 750,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $174,472,000 after acquiring an additional 250,000 shares during the last quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 82.0% during the 3rd quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 497,075 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $115,635,000 after acquiring an additional 223,931 shares during the period. Finally, Azora Capital LP increased its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 52.2% during the 3rd quarter. Azora Capital LP now owns 643,544 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $149,708,000 after purchasing an additional 220,622 shares during the last quarter. 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.