LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Sets New 12-Month High at $275.00

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $275.00 and last traded at $272.55, with a volume of 58111 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $273.91.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LPLA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $260.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Barclays boosted their price objective on LPL Financial from $302.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $305.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Raymond James began coverage on LPL Financial in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. They set an “underperform” rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $276.20.

LPL Financial Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $19.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.05, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.83. 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 business has a 50 day simple moving average of $264.62 and a 200-day simple moving average of $242.70.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.51 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.18. LPL Financial had a net margin of 9.71% and a return on equity of 56.36%. The firm had revenue of $2.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.55 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.21 EPS. LPL Financial’s quarterly revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 15.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 5,574 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.52, for a total value of $1,485,582.48. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,663 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,641,462.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, 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 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 document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 5,574 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.52, for a total transaction of $1,485,582.48. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 13,663 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,641,462.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 60,151 shares of company stock valued at $15,911,088. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LPL Financial

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its holdings in LPL Financial by 18.9% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 3,077 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $731,000 after acquiring an additional 489 shares during the period. Cigna Investments Inc. New acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $206,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 13.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 1,852 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $440,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. lifted its stake in LPL Financial by 1.0% during the third quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 11,139 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,647,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in LPL Financial by 0.5% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 372,531 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $88,532,000 after buying an additional 1,976 shares in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.