LPL Financial’s (LPLA) “Market Outperform” Rating Reiterated at Citizens Jmp

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA)‘s stock had its “market outperform” rating reiterated by investment analysts at Citizens Jmp in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $500.00 price objective on the financial services provider’s stock. Citizens Jmp’s price target indicates a potential upside of 67.51% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on LPLA. TD Cowen lowered their target price on LPL Financial from $399.00 to $378.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on LPL Financial from $433.00 to $439.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on LPL Financial from $462.00 to $447.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on LPL Financial from $444.00 to $434.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $430.50.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of LPLA opened at $298.50 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 2.45 and a current ratio of 2.45. The company has a market capitalization of $23.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.60, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.56. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $323.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $343.76. LPL Financial has a 1 year low of $262.83 and a 1 year high of $403.58.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $5.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.82 by $0.41. LPL Financial had a net margin of 5.08% and a return on equity of 34.19%. The business had revenue of $4.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.90 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $4.25 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that LPL Financial will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other LPL Financial news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 1,581 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $320.50, for a total transaction of $506,710.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 21,382 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,852,931. The trade was a 6.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,088 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.72, for a total transaction of $336,975.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,362,768. This trade represents a 19.83% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 6,990 shares of company stock valued at $2,201,837. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LPL Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. WCM Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 1,742,991 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $593,663,000 after buying an additional 12,214 shares in the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 41.5% in the third quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 5,341 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,777,000 after buying an additional 1,566 shares during the last quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC increased its position in LPL Financial by 116.6% during the third quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC now owns 5,568 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,852,000 after acquiring an additional 2,997 shares during the period. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 24.5% in the 3rd quarter. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. now owns 187,973 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $62,537,000 after buying an additional 36,950 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Munich Reinsurance Co Stock Corp in Munich bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,975,000. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

LPL Financial Company Profile

LPL Financial (NASDAQ: LPLA) is a U.S.-focused financial services firm that provides brokerage, custodial and advisory platforms to independent financial advisors, registered investment advisers and institutions. Operating primarily as an independent broker-dealer and custodian, the company supports a network of advisors with the operational, compliance and clearing infrastructure needed to manage client accounts and deliver investment advice outside of traditional wirehouse models.

The firm’s product and service offerings include trade execution and clearing, custody services, retirement plan services, model portfolio and advisory platforms, wealth management technology, investment research and product access across equities, fixed income, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and insurance and annuity solutions.