LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have given a hold recommendation and nine have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $290.83.

A number of brokerages have commented on LPLA. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $303.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $309.00 to $282.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $271.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $271.00 to $277.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th.

Institutional Trading of LPL Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LPLA. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Key Financial Inc bought a new position in LPL Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in LPL Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Paladin Wealth LLC bought a new position in LPL Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC boosted its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Stock Down 0.2 %

NASDAQ LPLA opened at $325.15 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 2.16. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $274.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $255.03. LPL Financial has a twelve month low of $187.19 and a twelve month high of $330.72. The stock has a market cap of $24.35 billion, a PE ratio of 24.45, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.85.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.69 by $0.47. The business had revenue of $3.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.73% and a return on equity of 49.47%. The firm’s revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.74 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that LPL Financial will post 16.1 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.02%.

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.