Lakeland Financial Co. (NASDAQ:LKFN) SVP Donald Robinson-Gay Sells 550 Shares of Stock

Lakeland Financial Co. (NASDAQ:LKFN) SVP Donald Robinson-Gay sold 550 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.25, for a total value of $36,437.50. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,974 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $329,527.50. This trade represents a 9.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Lakeland Financial Price Performance

LKFN opened at $65.16 on Thursday. Lakeland Financial Co. has a 12 month low of $57.45 and a 12 month high of $78.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.95 and a beta of 0.68. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $68.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $67.95.

Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.05. Lakeland Financial had a net margin of 21.74% and a return on equity of 13.31%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Lakeland Financial Co. will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Lakeland Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 5th. Shareholders of record on Saturday, January 25th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.07%. This is an increase from Lakeland Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Lakeland Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 55.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $74.00 price target (up previously from $73.00) on shares of Lakeland Financial in a research report on Monday, January 27th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lakeland Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LKFN. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lakeland Financial during the 4th quarter worth $23,111,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new position in Lakeland Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $10,560,000. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial by 54.0% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 307,242 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $21,126,000 after purchasing an additional 107,765 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Lakeland Financial by 5.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,940,356 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $133,419,000 after buying an additional 100,001 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in Lakeland Financial by 132.2% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 134,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,248,000 after purchasing an additional 76,562 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.15% of the company’s stock.

Lakeland Financial Company Profile

Lakeland Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company for Lake City Bank that provides various banking products and services in the United States. The company accepts various deposit products, such as noninterest bearing, interest-bearing checking, savings, money market, NOW, and demand deposits.