Lakeland Financial Co. (NASDAQ:LKFN) Stake Cut by Geode Capital Management LLC

Geode Capital Management LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial Co. (NASDAQ:LKFN) by 0.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 602,488 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,519 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 2.36% of Lakeland Financial worth $41,437,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in LKFN. Albert D Mason Inc. boosted its stake in Lakeland Financial by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Albert D Mason Inc. now owns 22,638 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,557,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the period. Forvis Mazars Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Forvis Mazars Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68,875 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,736,000 after buying an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in Lakeland Financial by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 50,150 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,448,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. WINTON GROUP Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Lakeland Financial by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 16,615 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,142,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial by 18.8% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,062 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $142,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.15% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LKFN has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Hovde Group began coverage on Lakeland Financial in a report on Friday, March 21st. They set a “market perform” rating and a $66.00 price objective on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $74.00 price target (up from $73.00) on shares of Lakeland Financial in a report on Monday, January 27th.

Lakeland Financial Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of LKFN stock opened at $52.09 on Wednesday. Lakeland Financial Co. has a 12 month low of $50.74 and a 12 month high of $78.61. The firm has a market cap of $1.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.35 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $61.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $66.39.

Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Lakeland Financial Co. will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lakeland Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.84%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 25th. Lakeland Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.10%.

Insider Transactions at Lakeland Financial

In other Lakeland Financial news, EVP Stephanie R. Leniski sold 1,500 shares of Lakeland Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.94, for a total value of $92,910.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $384,709.34. The trade was a 19.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Donald Robinson-Gay sold 550 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.25, for a total transaction of $36,437.50. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 4,974 shares in the company, valued at approximately $329,527.50. The trade was a 9.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 3.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Lakeland Financial

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.