TD Cowen Issues Pessimistic Forecast for LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Stock Price

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) had its price objective decreased by stock analysts at TD Cowen from $410.00 to $399.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “hold” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. TD Cowen’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 5.88% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Citizens Jmp upped their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $455.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $421.00 price objective on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Friday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $440.00 to $433.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Rothschild Redb lowered shares of LPL Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 19th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn cut LPL Financial from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $390.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Friday, September 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $429.07.

LPL Financial Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:LPLA opened at $376.83 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 2.60 and a current ratio of 2.60. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $365.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $359.10. LPL Financial has a 52-week low of $262.83 and a 52-week high of $403.58.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $5.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.49 by $0.71. The company had revenue of $4.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.08 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 36.80% and a net margin of 5.35%.The firm’s revenue was up 46.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.16 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that LPL Financial will post 19.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at LPL Financial

In related news, CEO Richard Steinmeier sold 5,058 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $370.99, for a total value of $1,876,467.42. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 9,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,459,852.74. This represents a 35.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Greg Gates sold 1,500 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $376.43, for a total value of $564,645.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 15,370 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,785,729.10. The trade was a 8.89% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 7,388 shares of company stock valued at $2,747,538. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LPL Financial

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in LPL Financial by 15,960.1% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,628,551 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $874,493,000 after acquiring an additional 2,612,184 shares during the period. Dodge & Cox lifted its position in LPL Financial by 77.3% during the second quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 2,701,709 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,013,060,000 after purchasing an additional 1,178,249 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in LPL Financial in the second quarter worth approximately $402,312,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in LPL Financial by 61.1% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,442,182 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $915,745,000 after purchasing an additional 926,122 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in LPL Financial by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 7,986,766 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,994,798,000 after purchasing an additional 613,909 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

About LPL Financial

LPL Financial (NASDAQ: LPLA) is a U.S.-focused financial services firm that provides brokerage, custodial and advisory platforms to independent financial advisors, registered investment advisers and institutions. Operating primarily as an independent broker-dealer and custodian, the company supports a network of advisors with the operational, compliance and clearing infrastructure needed to manage client accounts and deliver investment advice outside of traditional wirehouse models.

The firm’s product and service offerings include trade execution and clearing, custody services, retirement plan services, model portfolio and advisory platforms, wealth management technology, investment research and product access across equities, fixed income, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and insurance and annuity solutions.