LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on LPLA. TD Cowen upgraded shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $277.00 to $413.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays upped their price objective on LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $435.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $379.17.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of LPLA stock opened at $333.19 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $352.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $310.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 2.16. LPL Financial has a 1 year low of $187.19 and a 1 year high of $384.04. The firm has a market cap of $24.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.73, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.82.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.01 by $0.24. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.41% and a net margin of 8.55%. Analysts predict that LPL Financial will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In related news, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total transaction of $402,435.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 4,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,490,838.75. This represents a 21.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total transaction of $10,507,633.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,663 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,988,907.82. The trade was a 67.81 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,465 shares of company stock valued at $12,562,070 over the last three months. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of LPL Financial

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 113,287 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,989,000 after acquiring an additional 3,425 shares during the period. 111 Capital acquired a new position in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $358,000. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ acquired a new position in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $7,851,000. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH purchased a new position in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $271,000. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $6,821,000. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.