Citigroup Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Stock

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) had its price objective boosted by analysts at Citigroup from $310.00 to $385.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Citigroup’s price objective points to a potential upside of 15.55% from the company’s current price.

LPLA has been the topic of a number of other reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on LPL Financial from $310.00 to $390.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on LPL Financial from $309.00 to $282.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $311.00 to $378.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. StockNews.com raised LPL Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on LPL Financial from $303.00 to $309.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $351.42.

LPL Financial Trading Down 0.1 %

NASDAQ:LPLA traded down $0.24 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $333.18. 221,534 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 507,402. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $322.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $265.43. LPL Financial has a one year low of $187.19 and a one year high of $344.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.69 by $0.47. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.73% and a return on equity of 49.47%. The company had revenue of $3.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.74 EPS. LPL Financial’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that LPL Financial will post 16.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total value of $101,241.70. Following the sale, the director now owns 3,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,301,204.80. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LPLA. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its position in shares of LPL Financial by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 5,670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,584,000 after buying an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in LPL Financial by 7.7% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 5,551 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,548,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the second quarter valued at about $25,000. Wedbush Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the second quarter worth about $216,000. Finally, Choreo LLC bought a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the second quarter valued at approximately $415,000. 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.