LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Trading Down 0.1% - Time to Sell?

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report)'s stock price was down 0.1% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $369.55 and last traded at $371.79. Approximately 83,734 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 604,500 shares. The stock had previously closed at $372.34.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on LPLA shares. JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $435.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Friday, January 31st. TD Cowen upgraded LPL Financial from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $277.00 to $413.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on LPL Financial from $271.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on LPL Financial from $379.00 to $413.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $379.17.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $28.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.64, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.87. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $343.93 and a 200-day moving average of $284.71. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.32%. LPL Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.55%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total transaction of $101,241.70. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 3,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,301,204.80. This represents a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total value of $10,507,633.78. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 13,663 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,988,907.82. This represents a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of LPL Financial

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LPLA. Graney & King LLC purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in shares of LPL Financial by 45.3% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 138 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.