LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Reaches New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

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 changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $338.25.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LPLA has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup raised their target price on LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. UBS Group upgraded shares of LPL Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $390.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Barclays increased their price target on LPL Financial from $378.00 to $379.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. TD Cowen raised LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $277.00 to $413.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $351.50.

LPL Financial Stock Up 2.4 %

The stock’s fifty day moving average is $326.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $266.91. 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 firm has a market cap of $25.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.04, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 company had revenue of $3.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.47% and a net margin of 8.73%. The firm’s quarterly 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. As a group, research analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 16.07 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.35%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.02%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total transaction of $101,241.70. Following the sale, the director now owns 3,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,301,204.80. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LPL Financial

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LPLA. HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 34.0% during the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,304 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $426,000 after buying an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. Shelton Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,085,000. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 7,465 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,437,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares in the last quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $277,000. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in LPL Financial by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 1,132 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $370,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.