Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to “Hold” Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Sunday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on LKFN. Stephens set a $66.00 price target on Lakeland Financial in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Lakeland Financial in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Hovde Group lowered Lakeland Financial from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $68.00.

Lakeland Financial Stock Down 1.3%

NASDAQ:LKFN opened at $56.88 on Friday. Lakeland Financial has a fifty-two week low of $50.00 and a fifty-two week high of $69.40. The stock has a market cap of $1.44 billion, a PE ratio of 14.18 and a beta of 0.73. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $59.35 and its 200-day simple moving average is $60.82.

Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, January 26th. The financial services provider reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.02. Lakeland Financial had a net margin of 24.51% and a return on equity of 14.19%. The firm had revenue of $69.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $69.45 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.94 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Lakeland Financial will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Lakeland Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 5th. Stockholders of record on Sunday, January 25th were given a $0.52 dividend. This is an increase from Lakeland Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 23rd. Lakeland Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lakeland Financial

In other Lakeland Financial news, Director Bradley J. Toothaker sold 5,685 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.36, for a total value of $331,776.60. Following the sale, the director directly owned 20,178 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,177,588.08. This trade represents a 21.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director M Scott Welch purchased 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $57.95 per share, with a total value of $579,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 49,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,839,550. This trade represents a 25.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lakeland Financial

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Lakeland Financial by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,887,812 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $107,719,000 after purchasing an additional 19,967 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,354,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $83,237,000 after purchasing an additional 57,252 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lakeland Financial by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,049,197 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $59,867,000 after buying an additional 15,610 shares during the period. Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC grew its stake in shares of Lakeland Financial by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Neumeier Poma Investment Counsel LLC now owns 493,469 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,681,000 after buying an additional 29,044 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial by 403.6% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 383,525 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $23,568,000 after buying an additional 307,371 shares during the last quarter. 81.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Lakeland Financial

Lakeland Financial Corporation is a bank holding company based in Warsaw, Indiana, that operates through its principal subsidiary, Lakeland Bank. The company offers a full range of commercial and consumer banking services, including deposit products such as checking accounts, savings accounts and certificates of deposit, as well as a variety of loan offerings spanning commercial real estate, agricultural, mortgage, consumer and small-business lending.

Originally organized in 1893 as Kosciusko County State Bank, the enterprise reorganized as a bank holding company in 1984 to facilitate strategic growth and diversification.