LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Price Target Lowered to $365.00 at Barclays

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) had its price target lowered by equities researchers at Barclays from $414.00 to $365.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Barclays‘s target price points to a potential upside of 27.23% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on LPLA. StockNews.com lowered shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on LPL Financial from $415.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $369.83.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $286.89 on Monday. LPL Financial has a 52 week low of $187.19 and a 52 week high of $384.04. 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 fifty day simple moving average of $344.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $317.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.43, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.64.

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

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 13,663 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,988,907.82. This trade represents a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total value of $402,435.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 4,075 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,490,838.75. The trade was a 21.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,465 shares of company stock valued at $12,562,070 over the last ninety days. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of LPL Financial

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LPLA. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $305,747,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth $295,982,000. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,905,541 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,278,454,000 after purchasing an additional 805,637 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 20.6% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,050,529 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $996,032,000 after purchasing an additional 522,032 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in LPL Financial during the 4th quarter worth $153,946,000. 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.