LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) Stock Price Down 5% – Time to Sell?

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) shares fell 5% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $356.78 and last traded at $355.56. 322,915 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 52% from the average session volume of 672,040 shares. The stock had previously closed at $374.22.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LPLA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $390.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $397.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $271.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com raised LPL Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 9th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on LPL Financial from $389.00 to $414.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $379.17.

LPL Financial Stock Down 5.2 %

The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $349.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $292.24. The company has a market capitalization of $26.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.11, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.87. 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 (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The financial services provider reported $4.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.01 by $0.24. LPL Financial had a net margin of 8.55% and a return on equity of 49.41%. Equities research analysts anticipate that LPL Financial Holdings Inc. will post 19.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LPL Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.34%. LPL Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 8.55%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Aneri Jambusaria sold 305 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.94, for a total value of $101,241.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,301,204.80. This trade represents a 7.22 % 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 hyperlink. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 28,777 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $365.14, for a total transaction of $10,507,633.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,663 shares in the company, valued at $4,988,907.82. This trade represents a 67.81 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in LPL Financial in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC acquired a new position in LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of LPL Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $43,000. 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.