LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Issues Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.24 EPS

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.01 by $0.24, Zacks reports. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.47% and a net margin of 8.73%.

LPL Financial Price Performance

Shares of LPL Financial stock traded down $0.22 during trading on Thursday, hitting $361.80. 1,162,545 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 548,842. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $334.08 and its 200-day moving average is $272.49. 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 has a 52 week low of $187.19 and a 52 week high of $366.00. The stock has a market cap of $27.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.20, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 0.87.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.33%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on LPLA shares. UBS Group raised LPL Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $390.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, January 6th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $310.00 price objective on shares of LPL Financial in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on LPL Financial from $303.00 to $309.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on LPL Financial from $309.00 to $282.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded LPL Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $288.00 to $397.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, LPL Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $351.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 3,920 shares in the company, valued at $1,301,204.80. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.