JMP Securities Reaffirms “Market Outperform” Rating for LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA)

JMP Securities restated their market outperform rating on shares of LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) in a report issued on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. JMP Securities currently has a $305.00 target price on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $302.00 to $312.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. UBS Group boosted their price target on LPL Financial from $260.00 to $267.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on LPL Financial from $254.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on LPL Financial from $269.00 to $271.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Thursday, April 4th. They issued an underperform rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $276.20.

LPL Financial Stock Up 0.5 %

LPLA stock opened at $270.79 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $264.90 and its two-hundred day moving average is $243.19. The company has a market cap of $20.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 0.83. LPL Financial has a fifty-two week low of $179.00 and a fifty-two week high of $276.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.77.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.33 by $0.18. LPL Financial had a net margin of 9.71% and a return on equity of 56.36%. The company had revenue of $2.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.55 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.21 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that LPL Financial will post 15.82 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 20th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.06%.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 34,807 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.54, for a total transaction of $9,277,457.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 141,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,798,037.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $256.35, for a total value of $2,563,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 137,044 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,131,229.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 34,807 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.54, for a total transaction of $9,277,457.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 141,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,798,037.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 60,151 shares of company stock valued at $15,911,088. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LPL Financial

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LPLA. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,141,049 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,625,446,000 after purchasing an additional 48,439 shares during the period. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in LPL Financial by 3.9% during the third quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,145,780 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $509,945,000 after buying an additional 79,869 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in LPL Financial by 17.2% during the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,099,608 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $261,322,000 after acquiring an additional 161,485 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 21.5% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,026,721 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $233,744,000 after acquiring an additional 181,594 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $200,497,000. 95.66% of the stock is owned by 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.