LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Price Target Cut to $400.00 by Analysts at Citigroup

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) had its price objective reduced by Citigroup from $415.00 to $400.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com lowered LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. UBS Group raised their price target on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $380.42.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of LPL Financial stock opened at $338.40 on Wednesday. LPL Financial has a 12 month low of $187.19 and a 12 month high of $384.04. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $350.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $314.46. The firm has a market cap of $25.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.10, a P/E/G ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last posted its quarterly 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 net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 49.41%. On average, equities research analysts expect that LPL Financial will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.35%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.55%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 4,588 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.07, for a total value of $1,652,001.16. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 16,538 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,954,837.66. The trade was a 21.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total value of $402,435.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,490,838.75. This represents a 21.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,465 shares of company stock worth $12,562,070 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LPL Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 63.9% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its holdings in LPL Financial by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 113,287 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,989,000 after acquiring an additional 3,425 shares during the last quarter. 111 Capital acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $358,000. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the 4th quarter worth approximately $7,851,000. Finally, Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $271,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.