Weiss Ratings Reiterates "Hold (C+)" Rating for LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA)

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings has reiterated its "hold (C+)" rating for LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA), following its report on recent company performance.
• LPL Financial's recent earnings showed a positive outlook with earnings per share (EPS) of $4.51, exceeding consensus estimates by $0.30, and a revenue of $3.84 billion for the quarter.
• Despite the positive earnings, several analysts have adjusted their ratings, with Rothschild Redb downgrading LPL Financial from "strong-buy" to "hold," while Wells Fargo raised its target price from $402.00 to $420.00.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold (c+)" rating reiterated by equities researchers at Weiss Ratings in a research note issued on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

LPLA has been the subject of several other reports. Rothschild Redb downgraded LPL Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, September 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on LPL Financial in a research report on Friday, September 12th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $405.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen cut LPL Financial from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $406.00 to $403.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Wall Street Zen cut LPL Financial from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on LPL Financial from $402.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $394.69.

LPL Financial Price Performance

LPL Financial stock opened at $325.13 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 3.22, a quick ratio of 3.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The company has a market capitalization of $26.01 billion, a PE ratio of 22.24, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.61. LPL Financial has a 12 month low of $242.57 and a 12 month high of $403.58. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $349.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $353.45.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.21 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.77 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 39.80% and a net margin of 7.91%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 30.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.88 earnings per share. Analysts expect that LPL Financial will post 19.35 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 80 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $361.25, for a total transaction of $28,900.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 5,582 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,016,497.50. This trade represents a 1.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Greg Gates sold 750 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, October 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $314.42, for a total value of $235,815.00. Following the sale, the director owned 16,870 shares in the company, valued at $5,304,265.40. This trade represents a 4.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 3,830 shares of company stock worth $1,333,105 over the last quarter. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of LPL Financial

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Peak Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 56.2% in the third quarter. Peak Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,924 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $640,000 after purchasing an additional 692 shares in the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the third quarter valued at $3,096,000. Jackson Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 12.6% in the third quarter. Jackson Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,670 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,219,000 after purchasing an additional 749 shares in the last quarter. TT International Asset Management LTD grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 55.1% in the third quarter. TT International Asset Management LTD now owns 7,944 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,643,000 after purchasing an additional 2,822 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Praxis Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of LPL Financial by 40.3% in the third quarter. Praxis Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,703 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,232,000 after purchasing an additional 1,063 shares in 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.