LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Stock Gets Price Target Reduction from JPMorgan Chase & Co.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) had its target price lowered by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $445.00 to $413.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Capital One Financial set a $370.00 target price on LPL Financial in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on LPL Financial from $362.00 to $350.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on LPL Financial from $409.00 to $372.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $400.60.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

Shares of LPLA opened at $283.74 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $330.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $323.02. The firm has a market cap of $22.34 billion, a PE ratio of 12.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 0.53. LPL Financial has a 12-month low of $260.15 and a 12-month high of $400.16. The company has a current ratio of 2.39, a quick ratio of 2.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The financial services provider reported $5.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.69 by $0.28. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 32.36% and a net margin of 6.83%. The firm had revenue of $5.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.35 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $5.20 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that LPL Financial will post 23.50 EPS for the current year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 12th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 12th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is 9.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling at LPL Financial

In other LPL Financial news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 308 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $357.36, for a total transaction of $110,066.88. Following the transaction, the director owned 6,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,182,397.52. This represents a 4.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Katharine Reeping sold 440 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $347.88, for a total value of $153,067.20. Following the sale, the insider owned 1,774 shares in the company, valued at $617,139.12. This trade represents a 19.87% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 4,867 shares of company stock worth $1,726,944. Insiders own 0.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LPL Financial

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,333,189,000. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $1,182,595,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 8.6% during the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,666,780 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,103,079,000 after purchasing an additional 289,227 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in LPL Financial by 36.3% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,636,544 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $793,163,000 after purchasing an additional 702,061 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WCM Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 1,734,395 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $520,631,000 after acquiring an additional 12,922 shares in the last quarter. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about LPL Financial

Here are the key news stories impacting LPL Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: LPL added Anchor Financial Partners to its broker-dealer and RIA platforms. The team reportedly serves approximately $525 million in advisory, brokerage and retirement-plan assets, adding to LPL’s advisor network and asset base. LPL Financial Welcomes Anchor Financial Partners
• Positive Sentiment: A Bell Global Equities Fund investor letter pushed back against concerns that artificial intelligence could disrupt LPL’s advisor-driven business model, supporting the long-term value of its independent wealth-management platform. Bell Global Equities Fund on AI Disruption Concerns
• Neutral Sentiment: UBS lowered its target from $390 to $369 but maintained a Buy rating, implying substantial upside based on the referenced share price. This indicates analysts remain divided rather than uniformly bearish. UBS LPL Financial Ratings
• Negative Sentiment: TD Cowen, Barclays, Wells Fargo, Truist Financial and JPMorgan Chase all issued lower expectations or price targets for LPLA. TD Cowen’s revised target was reported at $356, while the cluster of reductions weakened investor sentiment and contributed to the stock’s decline. TD Cowen Cuts LPL Financial Target
• Negative Sentiment: Recent reported insider activity showed four open-market sales and no purchases over six months, adding a modest additional cautionary signal.

LPL Financial Company Profile

LPL Financial Holdings Inc is a financial services company that supports independent financial advisors and institutions across the United States. Through its primary subsidiary, LPL Financial LLC, the company provides brokerage, investment advisory, and custodial services, enabling advisors to serve individual investors, families, retirement plans, and other clients.

LPL’s platform includes access to brokerage and advisory products, securities clearing and custody, trading and operations support, technology, compliance services, investment research, and practice-management resources.