LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) Short Interest Update

LPL Financial Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:LPLA) was the target of a large drop in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,070,000 shares, a drop of 15.1% from the March 31st total of 1,260,000 shares. Currently, 1.5% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 532,700 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.0 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the stock. JMP Securities lifted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $290.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of LPL Financial from $266.00 to $269.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of LPL Financial from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $254.00 to $315.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Raymond James began coverage on shares of LPL Financial in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. They set an “underperform” rating for the company. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on shares of LPL Financial from $302.00 to $312.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LPL Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $276.00.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 5,574 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.52, for a total value of $1,485,582.48. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 13,663 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,641,462.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CEO Dan H. Arnold sold 34,807 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $266.54, for a total value of $9,277,457.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 141,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $37,798,037.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Matthew J. Audette sold 5,574 shares of LPL Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $266.52, for a total transaction of $1,485,582.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 13,663 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,641,462.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 60,151 shares of company stock worth $15,911,088. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LPL Financial

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. EdgeRock Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Smithfield Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of LPL Financial by 164.4% during the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 119 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of LPL Financial during the first quarter worth $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.66% of the company’s stock.

LPL Financial Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LPLA opened at $269.13 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $20.10 billion, a PE ratio of 19.72, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.84. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $264.44 and a 200 day moving average of $242.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.77. LPL Financial has a one year low of $179.00 and a one year high of $275.00.

LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The financial services provider reported $3.51 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.33 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $2.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.55 billion. LPL Financial had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 57.68%. The firm’s revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.21 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that LPL Financial will post 15.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.