LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Trading 1.7% Higher After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) were up 1.7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday after JMP Securities raised their price target on the stock from $290.00 to $305.00. JMP Securities currently has a market outperform rating on the stock. LPL Financial traded as high as $264.41 and last traded at $262.66. Approximately 112,802 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 530,389 shares. The stock had previously closed at $258.21.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of LPL Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the company from $254.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $302.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $266.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $260.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $268.36.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 34,807 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.54, for a total value of $9,277,457.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 141,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $37,798,037.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Matthew Enyedi sold 1,381 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.94, for a total transaction of $354,834.14. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 8,634 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,218,419.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 34,807 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.54, for a total transaction of $9,277,457.78. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 141,810 shares in the company, valued at $37,798,037.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 60,151 shares of company stock valued at $15,911,088 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of LPL Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 9.9% in the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 522 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $124,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC raised its position in LPL Financial by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC now owns 8,152 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,856,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd raised its position in LPL Financial by 13.6% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 417 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $99,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its position in LPL Financial by 12.5% in the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 496 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $118,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC raised its position in LPL Financial by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 985 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $19.39 billion, a PE ratio of 19.01, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.84. The business's 50-day moving average is $260.65 and its 200 day moving average is $239.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.77.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.51 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.33 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $2.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.55 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 57.68%. The firm's revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.21 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 15.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 12th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 11th. LPL Financial's payout ratio is currently 8.79%.

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.