LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Trading Up 0.2% – Still a Buy?

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) shares were up 0.2% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $372.63 and last traded at $368.00. Approximately 105,368 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 601,971 shares. The stock had previously closed at $367.32.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on LPLA shares. StockNews.com raised shares of LPL Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on LPL Financial from $271.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. TD Cowen upgraded LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $277.00 to $413.00 in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $379.17.

LPL Financial Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $28.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.87. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $343.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $283.83. 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 (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.01 by $0.24. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 49.41%. On average, research analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is currently 8.55%.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In related news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 3,920 shares in the company, valued at $1,301,204.80. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total transaction of $10,507,633.78. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 13,663 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,988,907.82. The trade was a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LPL Financial

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in LPL Financial in the third quarter worth $31,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in LPL Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the third quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 45.3% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 138 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 43 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.