William Blair Boosts Earnings Estimates for LPL Financial

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Free Report) - Analysts at William Blair increased their FY2024 earnings per share estimates for LPL Financial in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, January 13th. William Blair analyst J. Schmitt now expects that the financial services provider will post earnings per share of $16.30 for the year, up from their previous estimate of $16.20. The consensus estimate for LPL Financial's current full-year earnings is $16.07 per share.

LPLA has been the subject of several other reports. Barclays increased their price target on LPL Financial from $378.00 to $379.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of LPL Financial from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $288.00 to $397.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of LPL Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $277.00 to $413.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $271.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on LPL Financial from $310.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. One equities research 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 data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $351.50.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

LPL Financial stock traded up $7.96 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $346.21. 560,767 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 529,270. The firm has a market cap of $25.92 billion, a PE ratio of 26.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a current ratio of 2.16. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $326.88 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $267.46. LPL Financial has a twelve month low of $187.19 and a twelve month high of $347.74.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.69 by $0.47. The firm had revenue of $3.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.47% and a net margin of 8.73%. The business's revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.74 earnings per share.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 14th. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 9.02%.

Insider Transactions at LPL Financial

In other news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total transaction of $101,241.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LPL Financial

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of LPL Financial by 50.6% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 15,841 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,685,000 after acquiring an additional 5,320 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. acquired a new position in LPL Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,633,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in LPL Financial by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 25,418 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,913,000 after purchasing an additional 3,444 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 27.6% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,275,136 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $296,635,000 after purchasing an additional 276,166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 98.9% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 7,662 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,782,000 after buying an additional 3,809 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.66% of the company's stock.

LPL Financial Company Profile

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.