Trexquant Investment LP Makes New $1.51 Million Investment in Lakeland Financial Corporation $LKFN

Key Points

• Trexquant Investment LP has made a new investment of approximately $1.51 million in Lakeland Financial Corporation, purchasing 25,356 shares, indicating growing institutional interest in the company.
• Meanwhile, Lakeland Financial recently reported earnings per share of $1.04, beating analysts' expectations, though revenue fell short of estimates at $63.36 million.
• Additionally, the company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50, reflecting a yield of 2.9% and a payout ratio of 54.50%.

Trexquant Investment LP purchased a new position in shares of Lakeland Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:LKFN - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 25,356 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,507,000. Trexquant Investment LP owned 0.10% of Lakeland Financial at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Lakeland Financial by 5.6% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 999,033 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $59,383,000 after purchasing an additional 52,753 shares during the period. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC raised its position in shares of Lakeland Financial by 5.7% during the fourth quarter. Silvercrest Asset Management Group LLC now owns 956,565 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $65,773,000 after purchasing an additional 51,624 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Lakeland Financial by 2.3% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 476,997 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $28,353,000 after purchasing an additional 10,728 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Lakeland Financial by 4.1% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 349,868 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $20,796,000 after purchasing an additional 13,759 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Lakeland Financial by 1.5% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 181,034 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $10,761,000 after purchasing an additional 2,666 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.15% of the company's stock.

Lakeland Financial Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:LKFN traded down $0.04 during trading on Thursday, hitting $65.73. 106,924 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 136,631. The stock has a market cap of $1.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.91 and a beta of 0.64. Lakeland Financial Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $50.00 and a fifty-two week high of $78.61. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $65.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $61.25.

Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.11. Lakeland Financial had a return on equity of 13.57% and a net margin of 22.55%.The firm had revenue of $63.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $67.02 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.87 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Lakeland Financial Corporation will post 3.7 EPS for the current year.

Lakeland Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, August 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 25th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 25th. Lakeland Financial's payout ratio is currently 54.50%.

Insider Activity at Lakeland Financial

In other news, CFO Lisa M. O'neill sold 2,500 shares of Lakeland Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.72, for a total transaction of $166,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 34,366 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,292,899.52. The trade was a 6.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Eric H. Ottinger sold 4,635 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.07, for a total value of $310,869.45. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 32,282 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,165,153.74. This trade represents a 12.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 7,435 shares of company stock valued at $497,769 over the last quarter. 3.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $68.00 price target (up previously from $65.00) on shares of Lakeland Financial in a research report on Monday, July 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $70.00.

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.