LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Upgraded to Hold at StockNews.com

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on LPLA. UBS Group raised their target price on LPL Financial from $215.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on LPL Financial from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on LPL Financial from $326.00 to $315.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on LPL Financial from $271.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on LPL Financial from $271.00 to $277.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $286.92.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

LPLA stock traded up $7.35 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $312.25. 883,353 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 877,870. LPL Financial has a twelve month low of $187.19 and a twelve month high of $312.50. The company has a quick ratio of 2.16, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $242.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $249.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.85.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.69 by $0.47. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.47% and a net margin of 8.73%. The company had revenue of $3.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.04 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.74 earnings per share. LPL Financial's revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that LPL Financial will post 16.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LPLA. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in LPL Financial in the second quarter worth $25,000. Key Financial Inc purchased a new stake in LPL Financial during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in LPL Financial during the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Paladin Wealth LLC bought a new position in LPL Financial during the third quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Crewe Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 360.7% in the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 129 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. 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.