LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Downgraded by Citigroup to Sell

Citigroup cut shares of LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) from a neutral rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have $80.00 price objective on the financial services provider's stock.

LPLA has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $330.00 to $450.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. JMP Securities boosted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $420.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $405.00 to $342.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, June 14th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $400.00 to $450.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, LPL Financial presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $363.08.

LPL Financial Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:LPLA traded up $0.64 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $381.54. 216,071 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 803,067. 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 company has a market cap of $30.52 billion, a PE ratio of 26.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.64. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $372.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $349.25. LPL Financial has a twelve month low of $187.19 and a twelve month high of $390.23.

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

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 12th. Investors of record on Friday, May 30th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 8.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling at LPL Financial

In related news, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 owned 20,620 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,889,830.60. This represents a 6.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LPL Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,372,857 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,411,956,000 after buying an additional 154,200 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its position in LPL Financial by 26.0% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,905,541 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,278,454,000 after purchasing an additional 805,637 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in LPL Financial by 20.6% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,050,529 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $996,032,000 after purchasing an additional 522,032 shares during the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC grew its position in LPL Financial by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,681,617 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $877,264,000 after purchasing an additional 20,881 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dodge & Cox grew its position in LPL Financial by 224.1% in the 1st quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 1,523,460 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $498,385,000 after purchasing an additional 1,053,351 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company's stock.

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.