Zacks Research Lowers Earnings Estimates for LPL Financial

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) – Zacks Research cut their Q1 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of LPL Financial in a report issued on Wednesday, April 30th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the financial services provider will post earnings per share of $4.44 for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $4.54. The consensus estimate for LPL Financial’s current full-year earnings is $19.35 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for LPL Financial’s Q2 2025 earnings at $4.32 EPS.

LPLA has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on LPL Financial from $405.00 to $342.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays lowered their target price on LPL Financial from $414.00 to $365.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, JMP Securities lowered their target price on LPL Financial from $435.00 to $420.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $369.83.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

LPLA stock opened at $324.03 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $25.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.64. LPL Financial has a 1 year low of $187.19 and a 1 year high of $384.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 2.16. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $322.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $325.49.

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%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Marc Eliot Cohen sold 1,100 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $365.85, for a total transaction of $402,435.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 4,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,490,838.75. This trade represents a 21.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 4,588 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.07, for a total value of $1,652,001.16. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 16,538 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,954,837.66. This trade represents a 21.72 % 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 worth $12,562,070 over the last three months. 1.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LPL Financial

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LPLA. Graney & King LLC purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Private Trust Co. NA increased its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 234.5% during the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 97 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 63.9% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. City Holding Co. purchased a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the first quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new position in LPL Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

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.