LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Stock Price Down 0%

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) fell 0% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $265.52 and last traded at $266.80. 30,207 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 94% from the average session volume of 521,107 shares. The stock had previously closed at $266.90.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on LPLA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on LPL Financial from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. TD Cowen raised their price target on LPL Financial from $266.00 to $269.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Raymond James initiated coverage on LPL Financial in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. They issued an “underperform” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley upgraded LPL Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $254.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, JMP Securities increased their target price on LPL Financial from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $268.36.

LPL Financial Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The company has a market cap of $19.76 billion, a PE ratio of 19.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.84. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $263.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $241.30.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.18. The business 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 company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.21 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 15.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 12th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 11th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.79%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other LPL Financial news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.35, for a total value of $2,563,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 137,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $35,131,229.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 10,000 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $256.35, for a total transaction of $2,563,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 137,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $35,131,229.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 7,089 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $265.66, for a total value of $1,883,263.74. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 133,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,377,676.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 60,151 shares of company stock valued at $15,911,088. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LPL Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LPLA. Norges Bank purchased a new position in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $200,497,000. TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in LPL Financial by 286.0% during the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 828,369 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $188,553,000 after acquiring an additional 613,792 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in LPL Financial by 1,732.0% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 568,292 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $135,055,000 after acquiring an additional 537,272 shares in the last quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. raised its position in LPL Financial by 89.0% during the fourth quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 774,297 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $176,245,000 after acquiring an additional 364,597 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its position in LPL Financial by 358.2% during the third quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 456,990 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $108,604,000 after acquiring an additional 357,245 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.