JPMorgan Chase & Co. Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Stock

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) had its price objective hoisted by research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $397.00 to $405.00 in a research report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price objective suggests a potential upside of 9.61% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on LPLA. TD Cowen raised shares of LPL Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $277.00 to $413.00 in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group raised shares of LPL Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $390.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on LPL Financial from $309.00 to $282.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $368.00.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

NASDAQ LPLA traded up $7.71 on Friday, reaching $369.51. The stock had a trading volume of 645,126 shares, compared to its average volume of 551,797. 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 stock has a market cap of $27.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.87. LPL Financial has a 12-month low of $187.19 and a 12-month high of $375.74. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $334.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $273.11.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.01 by $0.24. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.73% and a return on equity of 49.47%. As a group, equities analysts expect that LPL Financial will post 16.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other LPL Financial news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total value of $101,241.70. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 3,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,301,204.80. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of LPL Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Creative Planning boosted its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 14.7% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 4,574 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,278,000 after buying an additional 586 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in LPL Financial during the second quarter valued at approximately $227,000. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in shares of LPL Financial by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 14,439 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,033,000 after purchasing an additional 805 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of LPL Financial in the second quarter valued at approximately $3,478,000. Finally, Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the second quarter valued at approximately $450,000. 95.66% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.