Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Lakeland Financial Co. (NASDAQ:LKFN)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $75.50 and last traded at $74.95, with a volume of 22847 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $66.53.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Lakeland Financial from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 29th.

Lakeland Financial Stock Up 1.2 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.85 billion, a PE ratio of 18.64 and a beta of 0.65. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $65.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $63.70.

Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.03. Lakeland Financial had a return on equity of 13.64% and a net margin of 22.85%. The firm had revenue of $106.94 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.90 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.98 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Lakeland Financial Co. will post 3.4 EPS for the current year.

Lakeland Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, November 5th. Investors of record on Friday, October 25th were issued a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 25th. Lakeland Financial’s payout ratio is 49.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lakeland Financial

In other news, President Kristin Pruitt sold 12,000 shares of Lakeland Financial stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.06, for a total transaction of $804,720.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 10,252 shares in the company, valued at $687,499.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, SVP James Rickard Donovan sold 800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.42, for a total value of $52,336.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 9,568 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $625,938.56. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, President Kristin Pruitt sold 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.06, for a total transaction of $804,720.00. Following the sale, the president now owns 10,252 shares in the company, valued at $687,499.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,950 shares of company stock valued at $868,383. Insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lakeland Financial

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Raymond James & Associates lifted its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial by 132.5% in the second quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 98,219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,042,000 after buying an additional 55,975 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial by 686.8% in the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 57,051 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,510,000 after acquiring an additional 49,800 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC bought a new position in Lakeland Financial during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,352,000. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Lakeland Financial by 24.8% in the 2nd quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 65,224 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,013,000 after purchasing an additional 12,975 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Lakeland Financial by 5.8% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 233,836 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $14,386,000 after purchasing an additional 12,846 shares during the last quarter. 81.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.