LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Shares of LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $322.03 and last traded at $319.96, with a volume of 249788 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $314.38.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on LPLA shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised LPL Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $235.00 to $285.00 in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of LPL Financial from $271.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $273.00 to $311.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $310.00 target price on shares of LPL Financial in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $286.92.

LPL Financial Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $23.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.60. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $248.20 and its 200 day moving average is $250.73.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.69 by $0.47. The company had revenue of $3.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.04 billion. LPL Financial had a return on equity of 49.47% and a net margin of 8.73%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.74 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 16.08 earnings per share for the current year.

LPL Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.38%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.02%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LPLA. FMR LLC raised its holdings in LPL Financial by 24.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,322,571 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $772,930,000 after acquiring an additional 650,675 shares in the last quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its position in LPL Financial by 9.9% during the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,589,793 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $723,329,000 after purchasing an additional 233,242 shares during the period. Boston Partners grew its stake in LPL Financial by 71.9% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 1,765,230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $466,434,000 after buying an additional 738,509 shares in the last quarter. Samlyn Capital LLC increased its holdings in LPL Financial by 8.0% in the 2nd quarter. Samlyn Capital LLC now owns 1,194,715 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $333,684,000 after buying an additional 88,635 shares during the period. Finally, Epoch Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in LPL Financial by 19.8% in the first quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 927,369 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $245,011,000 after acquiring an additional 153,072 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.