LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Reaches New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $347.74 and last traded at $344.54, with a volume of 30675 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $338.25.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $325.00 to $390.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of LPL Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $288.00 to $397.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. UBS Group raised shares of LPL Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $390.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of LPL Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on LPL Financial from $303.00 to $309.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $351.50.

LPL Financial Trading Up 0.8 %

The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $327.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $267.93. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.24, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.87.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.69 by $0.47. The firm had revenue of $3.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.04 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.47% and a net margin of 8.73%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.74 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 16.07 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.34%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 9.02%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total transaction of $101,241.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,301,204.80. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of LPL Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Paladin Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in LPL Financial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 32.3% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 385 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $90,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 45.3% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 327 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.