LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Shares Down 6.3% – What’s Next?

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) traded down 6.3% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $372.63 and last traded at $368.62. 313,639 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 54% from the average session volume of 684,386 shares. The stock had previously closed at $393.25.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LPLA has been the subject of several analyst reports. TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $399.00 to $378.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group set a $500.00 price target on LPL Financial in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $421.00 price objective on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Friday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on LPL Financial from $433.00 to $439.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, JMP Securities set a $475.00 price objective on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Friday, October 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $431.80.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $28.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 2.60 and a current ratio of 2.60. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $369.93 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $358.37.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $5.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.82 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $4.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.90 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 35.99% and a net margin of 5.08%.The company’s revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $4.25 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 24th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 10th. LPL Financial’s payout ratio is presently 10.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling at LPL Financial

In other news, Director Greg Gates sold 750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $370.97, for a total transaction of $278,227.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 14,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,423,581.40. This represents a 4.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Richard Steinmeier sold 5,058 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $370.99, for a total transaction of $1,876,467.42. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 9,326 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,459,852.74. This trade represents a 35.16% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 5,888 shares of company stock valued at $2,182,893. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LPL Financial

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LPLA. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in LPL Financial during the second quarter worth $26,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of LPL Financial by 3,650.0% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 75 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 550.0% in the 4th quarter. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. now owns 78 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. grew its position in LPL Financial by 116.2% during the second quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 80 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, Chung Wu Investment Group LLC purchased a new stake in LPL Financial during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

About LPL Financial

LPL Financial (NASDAQ: LPLA) is a U.S.-focused financial services firm that provides brokerage, custodial and advisory platforms to independent financial advisors, registered investment advisers and institutions. Operating primarily as an independent broker-dealer and custodian, the company supports a network of advisors with the operational, compliance and clearing infrastructure needed to manage client accounts and deliver investment advice outside of traditional wirehouse models.

The firm’s product and service offerings include trade execution and clearing, custody services, retirement plan services, model portfolio and advisory platforms, wealth management technology, investment research and product access across equities, fixed income, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds and insurance and annuity solutions.