JPMorgan Chase & Co. Increases Stake in Lakeland Financial Co. (NASDAQ:LKFN)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Lakeland Financial Co. (NASDAQ:LKFN - Free Report) by 132.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 134,495 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 76,562 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 0.53% of Lakeland Financial worth $9,248,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Lakeland Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $23,111,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Lakeland Financial in the fourth quarter worth $10,560,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $133,419,000 after acquiring an additional 100,001 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Lakeland Financial by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 946,280 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $65,066,000 after purchasing an additional 43,312 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its stake in Lakeland Financial by 130.5% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 50,960 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,320,000 after purchasing an additional 28,851 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.15% of the company's stock.

Lakeland Financial Stock Down 1.1 %

LKFN traded down $0.60 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $53.02. The company had a trading volume of 784,919 shares, compared to its average volume of 129,385. The business has a 50-day moving average of $60.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.21. Lakeland Financial Co. has a 1 year low of $50.74 and a 1 year high of $78.61. The company has a market cap of $1.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.61 and a beta of 0.64.

Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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, equities research analysts predict that Lakeland Financial Co. will post 3.7 EPS for the current year.

Lakeland Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 5th. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 25th. Lakeland Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on LKFN. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a "market perform" rating and set a $74.00 price objective (up from $73.00) on shares of Lakeland Financial in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Hovde Group started coverage on Lakeland Financial in a research note on Friday, March 21st. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $66.00 price target on the stock.

Insider Transactions at Lakeland Financial

In related news, SVP Donald Robinson-Gay sold 550 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 4,974 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $329,527.50. This represents a 9.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director M Scott Welch acquired 5,000 shares of Lakeland Financial stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $61.40 per share, for a total transaction of $307,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 39,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,394,600. The trade was a 14.71 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

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.