LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Rating Lowered to "Sell" at Citigroup

Citigroup downgraded shares of LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) from a neutral rating to a sell rating in a research note published on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $80.00 price target on the financial services provider's stock.

Several other analysts also recently commented on LPLA. JMP Securities increased their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $420.00 to $460.00 in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, June 14th. Finally, TD Cowen reaffirmed a "hold" rating and set a $403.00 price target (down previously from $406.00) on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $362.31.

LPL Financial Trading Down 0.7%

NASDAQ:LPLA traded down $2.70 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $380.90. 685,485 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 851,225. The company has a fifty day moving average of $371.40 and a 200 day moving average of $349.03. LPL Financial has a 12 month low of $187.19 and a 12 month high of $390.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 2.31 and a current ratio of 2.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.36, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.64.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The financial services provider reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.54 by $0.61. The company had revenue of $3.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.63 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.23% and a return on equity of 46.34%. LPL Financial's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.83 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that LPL Financial will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th were given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.32%. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 8.30%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $382.63, for a total transaction of $573,945.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 20,620 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,889,830.60. The trade was a 6.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of LPL Financial

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the first quarter valued at $26,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC lifted its stake in LPL Financial by 123.1% in the first quarter. Millstone Evans Group LLC now owns 87 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the period. Graney & King LLC purchased a new stake in LPL Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 234.5% during the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 63.9% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About LPL Financial

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.