Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.03 EPS

Key Points

• Q1 EPS beat: Lakeland Financial reported quarterly EPS of $1.04, beating estimates by $0.03 while revenue of $69.71M slightly missed expectations; net margin was 24.51% and ROE 14.19% with EPS up from $0.78 a year earlier.
• Dividend announced: The board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.52 (annualized $2.08) payable May 5, with an ex-dividend date of April 24 and a yield of about 3.5% (payout ratio ~51.9%).
• Insider activity: Director M. Scott Welch purchased 10,000 shares at $56.23, and insiders net acquired 25,000 shares over the last three months; insiders now own roughly 3% of the stock.

Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday. The financial services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.03, Zacks reports. The firm had revenue of $69.71 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $70.04 million. Lakeland Financial had a net margin of 24.51% and a return on equity of 14.19%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.78 EPS.

Lakeland Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LKFN opened at $59.69 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.89 and a beta of 0.72. Lakeland Financial has a 52-week low of $50.00 and a 52-week high of $69.40. The company's 50 day moving average price is $58.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.96.

Lakeland Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 5th. Investors of record on Saturday, April 25th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 24th. Lakeland Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 51.87%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on LKFN. Wall Street Zen raised Lakeland Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 19th. Stephens set a $66.00 target price on Lakeland Financial in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Lakeland Financial in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Hovde Group cut shares of Lakeland Financial from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $68.00.

Insider Activity at Lakeland Financial

In other Lakeland Financial news, Director M Scott Welch purchased 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $56.23 per share, for a total transaction of $562,300.00. Following the acquisition, the director owned 212,006 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,921,097.38. This represents a 4.95% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Bradley J. Toothaker sold 5,685 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.36, for a total value of $331,776.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,178 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,177,588.08. The trade was a 21.98% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders acquired 25,000 shares of company stock worth $1,419,050. Insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Lakeland Financial

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Lakeland Financial by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 9,960 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $611,000 after buying an additional 292 shares during the period. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its position in shares of Lakeland Financial by 186.0% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 469 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 305 shares during the period. State of Wyoming raised its stake in Lakeland Financial by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 2,431 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $139,000 after buying an additional 348 shares in the last quarter. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Lakeland Financial by 4.2% in the second quarter. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC now owns 8,697 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $534,000 after buying an additional 354 shares during the period. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in Lakeland Financial by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 23,574 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,449,000 after acquiring an additional 464 shares in the last quarter. 81.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Lakeland Financial Company Profile

Lakeland Financial Corporation is a bank holding company based in Warsaw, Indiana, that operates through its principal subsidiary, Lakeland Bank. The company offers a full range of commercial and consumer banking services, including deposit products such as checking accounts, savings accounts and certificates of deposit, as well as a variety of loan offerings spanning commercial real estate, agricultural, mortgage, consumer and small-business lending.

Originally organized in 1893 as Kosciusko County State Bank, the enterprise reorganized as a bank holding company in 1984 to facilitate strategic growth and diversification.

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