Lakeland Financial Co. (NASDAQ:LKFN) Director Buys 5,016 Shares

Lakeland Financial Co. (NASDAQ:LKFN – Get Rating) Director M Scott Welch bought 5,016 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 9th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $64.97 per share, for a total transaction of $325,889.52. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,016 shares in the company, valued at $325,889.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Lakeland Financial Price Performance

LKFN stock opened at $62.65 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87. Lakeland Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $59.55 and a 52-week high of $83.57. The company has a market capitalization of $1.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.51 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $71.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $74.58.

Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 25th. The financial services provider reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.13 by ($0.12). Lakeland Financial had a return on equity of 18.38% and a net margin of 36.89%. The company had revenue of $85.87 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $65.70 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.95 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Lakeland Financial Co. will post 4.35 EPS for the current year.

Lakeland Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 6th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 25th were given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 24th. This is a boost from Lakeland Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.40. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.94%. Lakeland Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 45.54%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lakeland Financial by 78.9% during the 4th quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 381 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial by 47.6% during the third quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 431 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in shares of Lakeland Financial by 45.3% during the 2nd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. acquired a new stake in shares of Lakeland Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, Point72 Middle East FZE bought a new stake in Lakeland Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. 80.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Raymond James raised Lakeland Financial from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $78.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 21st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Lakeland Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, January 26th.

About Lakeland Financial

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Lakeland Financial Corp. is a bank holding company, which engages in the provision of banking products and services. It offers commercial and consumer banking, trust and wealth management, brokerage, and treasury management commercial services. The company was founded on February 8, 1983 and is headquartered in Warsaw, IN.