LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Trading Up 0.5%

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) shares shot up 0.5% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $261.13 and last traded at $260.29. 30,793 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 94% from the average session volume of 527,929 shares. The stock had previously closed at $259.11.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised shares of LPL Financial from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $254.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Barclays lifted their price objective on LPL Financial from $302.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Raymond James assumed coverage on LPL Financial in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. They set an "underperform" rating on the stock. TD Cowen lifted their price target on LPL Financial from $266.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Finally, JMP Securities increased their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $268.36.

LPL Financial Trading Up 0.3 %

The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $262.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $240.60. The company has a market capitalization of $19.41 billion, a PE ratio of 19.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $2.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.55 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 57.68% and a net margin of 10.61%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $4.21 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 15.55 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Kabir Sethi sold 1,300 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.50, for a total transaction of $346,450.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 10,245 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,730,292.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, Director Kabir Sethi sold 1,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.50, for a total transaction of $346,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,730,292.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Matthew Enyedi sold 1,381 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 8,634 shares in the company, valued at $2,218,419.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 60,151 shares of company stock worth $15,911,088 in the last 90 days. 1.00% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 36.9% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 4,383 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $801,000 after acquiring an additional 1,181 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in LPL Financial by 29.1% in the 1st quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 2,172 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $395,000 after purchasing an additional 489 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 21.3% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,392 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $802,000 after purchasing an additional 770 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 176.6% during the first quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 6,549 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,216,000 after buying an additional 4,181 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in LPL Financial in the 1st quarter worth approximately $58,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company's stock.

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.