JPMorgan Chase & Co. Boosts LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Price Target to $408.00

Key Points

• JPMorgan raised LPL Financial’s price target from $390 to $408 and kept an overweight rating, implying about 27.8% upside from the prior close.
• Other analysts remain broadly positive on LPLA, with multiple firms reiterating buy/outperform ratings. The consensus view is a Moderate Buy and the average price target is about $397.92.
• LPL Financial recently beat earnings expectations, reporting $5.60 EPS versus estimates of $5.49, while revenue rose 34.6% year over year. Shares were up modestly in Monday trading but still traded well below the new JPMorgan target.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) had its target price increased by equities researchers at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $390.00 to $408.00 in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "overweight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s price target points to a potential upside of 27.76% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on LPLA. Barclays cut their target price on LPL Financial from $412.00 to $394.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on LPL Financial from $374.00 to $387.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods assumed coverage on LPL Financial in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $350.00 price objective for the company. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on LPL Financial from $395.00 to $391.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $397.92.

LPL Financial Stock Up 0.7%

LPLA traded up $2.32 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $319.35. 121,877 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 982,897. The company's fifty day moving average price is $292.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $319.60. LPL Financial has a one year low of $260.15 and a one year high of $403.58. The company has a market cap of $25.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 2.56 and a current ratio of 2.56.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $5.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.49 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $4.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.98 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 31.26% and a net margin of 4.93%.LPL Financial's quarterly revenue was up 34.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.15 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that LPL Financial will post 23.02 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other LPL Financial news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 308 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $306.00, for a total transaction of $94,248.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,415 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,962,990. The trade was a 4.58% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 1,110 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $330.01, for a total transaction of $366,311.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 19,803 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,535,188.03. The trade was a 5.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,887 shares of company stock worth $613,144. 0.60% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Annex Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 10.5% in the second quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 12,128 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,416,000 after buying an additional 1,153 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its holdings in LPL Financial by 14.5% during the 2nd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 25,861 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,285,000 after acquiring an additional 3,280 shares during the period. KWB Wealth raised its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 0.4% during the second quarter. KWB Wealth now owns 28,751 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $8,099,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the second quarter valued at approximately $278,000. Finally, Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC lifted its stake in LPL Financial by 6.2% in the second quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC now owns 11,152 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,141,000 after acquiring an additional 650 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About LPL Financial

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.

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