Envestnet Asset Management Inc. Has $12.27 Million Stake in Lakeland Financial Co. (NASDAQ:LKFN)

Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial Co. (NASDAQ:LKFN - Free Report) by 10.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 178,368 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 21,480 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. owned 0.70% of Lakeland Financial worth $12,265,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Lakeland Financial during the fourth quarter worth $50,000. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC bought a new position in Lakeland Financial during the 4th quarter worth about $53,000. KBC Group NV raised its stake in shares of Lakeland Financial by 62.3% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,672 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $115,000 after purchasing an additional 642 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial by 18.8% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,062 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE boosted its position in shares of Lakeland Financial by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,480 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $171,000 after buying an additional 357 shares during the period. 81.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lakeland Financial Trading Up 3.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ LKFN traded up $1.77 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $55.53. The company had a trading volume of 47,356 shares, compared to its average volume of 129,672. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $59.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.04. The company has a market capitalization of $1.44 billion, a PE ratio of 15.30 and a beta of 0.64. Lakeland Financial Co. has a one year low of $50.74 and a one year high of $78.61.

Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.05. Lakeland Financial had a return on equity of 13.31% and a net margin of 21.74%. Sell-side analysts expect that Lakeland Financial Co. will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lakeland Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 25th. Lakeland Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lakeland Financial

In other news, EVP Stephanie R. Leniski sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.94, for a total transaction of $92,910.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,211 shares in the company, valued at $384,709.34. The trade was a 19.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $36,437.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 4,974 shares in the company, valued at approximately $329,527.50. This trade represents a 9.96 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Lakeland Financial 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.