Lakeland Financial Corporation $LKFN Shares Newly Purchased by Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.

Key Points

• Mirae Asset Global Investments established a new Lakeland Financial position, buying 23,691 shares valued at about $1.37 million, or 0.10% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly neutral: five analysts rate the stock Hold, with a consensus price target of $65.67.
• Lakeland Financial beat quarterly EPS estimates ($1.14 versus $1.09), while revenue came in slightly below expectations; it also paid a $0.52 quarterly dividend, equivalent to a 3.4% yield.

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Lakeland Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:LKFN - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 23,691 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,366,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. owned 0.10% of Lakeland Financial at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lakeland Financial by 44.9% in the 3rd quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 163,890 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $9,450,000 after acquiring an additional 50,763 shares during the period. Choreo LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial by 15.8% in the third quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 7,597 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $438,000 after acquiring an additional 1,036 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial by 176.3% in the third quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 688 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 439 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial by 14.5% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,934 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $112,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of Lakeland Financial by 3,327.5% during the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,748 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $101,000 after acquiring an additional 1,697 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.15% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Lakeland Financial from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 27th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Lakeland Financial from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 9th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Lakeland Financial in a research note on Tuesday, October 27th. Raymond James Financial reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Lakeland Financial in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. Finally, Stephens lifted their price target on Lakeland Financial from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating. According to MarketBeat, Lakeland Financial has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $65.67.

Lakeland Financial Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of Lakeland Financial stock opened at $61.15 on Friday. Lakeland Financial Corporation has a 12 month low of $54.36 and a 12 month high of $64.55. The stock has a market cap of $1.51 billion, a PE ratio of 13.68 and a beta of 0.77. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $59.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.97.

Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 26th. The financial services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $73.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $73.74 million. Lakeland Financial had a net margin of 26.51% and a return on equity of 15.07%. Lakeland Financial's revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.03 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Lakeland Financial Corporation will post 4.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lakeland Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, November 5th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, October 25th were given a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 23rd. Lakeland Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 46.53%.

Lakeland Financial Company Profile

Lakeland Financial Corporation is a bank holding company headquartered in Warsaw, Indiana. Through its principal subsidiary, Lake City Bank, the company provides banking and financial services to businesses, individuals, families and nonprofit organizations.

Lake City Bank's services include commercial and consumer lending, residential mortgages, deposit accounts, treasury management, online and mobile banking, trust and investment management, and other wealth management services. Its commercial banking activities serve companies across a range of industries, while its consumer offerings include personal checking, savings, home lending and other credit products.

Founded in 1872, Lake City Bank has a long history of serving communities in Indiana.

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