Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report released on Saturday morning.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Hovde Group upped their target price on shares of Lakeland Financial from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings lowered Lakeland Financial from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $66.50.

Lakeland Financial Price Performance

Shares of Lakeland Financial stock opened at $62.91 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $61.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $60.01. Lakeland Financial has a 12 month low of $54.36 and a 12 month high of $69.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.43 and a beta of 0.73.

Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The financial services provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.05. Lakeland Financial had a net margin of 26.04% and a return on equity of 14.67%. The firm had revenue of $70.87 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $72.11 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.04 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Lakeland Financial will post 4.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Lakeland Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, July 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 24th. Lakeland Financial’s payout ratio is 47.71%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Bradley J. Toothaker sold 5,900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.62, for a total transaction of $357,658.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 14,278 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $865,532.36. This represents a 29.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Steven D. Ross sold 1,281 shares of Lakeland Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.50, for a total value of $80,062.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 27,001 shares in the company, valued at $1,687,562.50. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 7,431 shares of company stock valued at $453,526 over the last three months. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lakeland Financial

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lakeland Financial by 186.0% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 469 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Lakeland Financial by 1,212.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 630 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 582 shares in the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its holdings in Lakeland Financial by 40.5% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 729 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Lakeland Financial by 118.9% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 996 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 541 shares during the period. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lakeland Financial during the 1st quarter worth $86,000. 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.