While keeping his Q3 estimates largely unchanged, Wells Fargo analyst Christopher Harris lowered his fiscal 2020 and 2021 earnings estimates for LPL Financial (LPLA), Raymond James (RJF) and Stifel Financial (SF) by 7%-8%. The lower estimates mostly reflect lower interest rates, says Harris, whose model now incorporates four 25 basis points cuts relative to Q2 of 2019 to the Fed Funds rate by Q1 of 2020, compared to a prior estimate of two. For Q3, the analyst's estimates are generally in line with consensus for LPL and Stifel but 3% above consensus for Raymond James. Harris also lowered his price target for Market Perform-rated LPL to $78 from $92, for Outperform-rated Raymond James to $87 from $98, and for Market Perform-rated Stifel to $59 from $66.

LPL Financial announced that financial advisors Alejandro "Alex" De Leon and Robert "Bob" Gorman have joined LPL Financial's broker-dealer, RIA and custodial platforms. They reported having served approximately $200 million in advisory, brokerage and retirement plan assets, and join LPL from Wells Fargo Advisors. Headquartered in Corpus Christi, Texas, De Leon and Gorman were colleagues in the same office for years before deciding to team up to start their own independent practice. After more than a year of planning, sharing ideas and many redlining lunches, the team - who share more than five decades of wealth management experience - launched Spotlight Financial. De Leon and Gorman say their new firm will provide an elevated client experience with a focus on financial education and transparency.