LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Reaches New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $323.21 and last traded at $323.21, with a volume of 73845 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $317.05.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on LPLA. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on LPL Financial from $303.00 to $309.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Citigroup upped their price target on LPL Financial from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on LPL Financial from $326.00 to $315.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 26th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded LPL Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $235.00 to $285.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $310.00 price target on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $286.92.

LPL Financial Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $260.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $252.81. The stock has a market cap of $24.47 billion, a PE ratio of 24.58, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 0.85.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.69 by $0.47. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.47% and a net margin of 8.73%. The firm had revenue of $3.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.74 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 16.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.37%. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is 9.02%.

Institutional Trading of LPL Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LPLA. FMR LLC increased its stake in LPL Financial by 24.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,322,571 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $772,930,000 after acquiring an additional 650,675 shares during the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in LPL Financial by 9.9% in the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,589,793 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $723,329,000 after buying an additional 233,242 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its position in LPL Financial by 71.9% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,765,230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $466,434,000 after acquiring an additional 738,509 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 2.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,436,831 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $333,581,000 after acquiring an additional 36,474 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Samlyn Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 8.0% in the 2nd quarter. Samlyn Capital LLC now owns 1,194,715 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $333,684,000 after acquiring an additional 88,635 shares during the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is currently 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.