Citigroup Increases LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Price Target to $310.00

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) had its target price hoisted by Citigroup from $285.00 to $310.00 in a report released on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com downgraded LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $310.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $303.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $271.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of LPL Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $235.00 to $285.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $284.31.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

LPL Financial stock traded down $1.54 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $280.64. The company had a trading volume of 231,722 shares, compared to its average volume of 734,893. LPL Financial has a one year low of $187.19 and a one year high of $291.67. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $234.24 and a 200 day moving average of $248.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 2.16. The firm has a market cap of $20.98 billion, a PE ratio of 21.20, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.88.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.69 by $0.47. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.73% and a return on equity of 52.08%. The firm had revenue of $3.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.74 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that LPL Financial will post 15.71 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 9.02%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the second quarter valued at $25,000. Key Financial Inc bought a new stake in LPL Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Paladin Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in LPL Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 360.7% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. Finally, Tortoise Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 74.7% during the 2nd quarter. Tortoise Investment Management LLC now owns 131 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Institutional investors 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.