Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.11 EPS

Key Points

• Lakeland Financial reported an EPS of $1.04 for the quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations by $0.11, while revenue came in at $63.36 million, below the consensus estimate of $67.02 million.
• The company declared a $0.50 per share quarterly dividend with a yield of 3.03%, indicating a solid return to its investors.
• Hovde Group upgraded Lakeland Financial's stock rating from "market perform" to "outperform" with a new price target of $72.00.

Lakeland Financial (NASDAQ:LKFN - Get Free Report) released its quarterly earnings data on Friday. The financial services provider reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.11, Zacks reports. Lakeland Financial had a return on equity of 12.71% and a net margin of 21.08%. The business had revenue of $63.36 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $67.02 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.87 EPS.

Lakeland Financial Trading Up 2.7%

NASDAQ:LKFN opened at $66.02 on Friday. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $61.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $61.88. The company has a market capitalization of $1.69 billion, a PE ratio of 17.99 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Lakeland Financial has a 52-week low of $50.00 and a 52-week high of $78.61.

Lakeland Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, August 5th. Investors of record on Friday, July 25th will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 25th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.03%. Lakeland Financial's dividend payout ratio is presently 54.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on LKFN shares. Hovde Group upgraded Lakeland Financial from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $72.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on Lakeland Financial from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th.

Insider Transactions at Lakeland Financial

In other news, Director Melinda Jo Truex purchased 8,309 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $60.11 per share, for a total transaction of $499,453.99. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 16,507 shares of the company's stock, valued at $992,235.77. This represents a 101.35% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 3.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in Lakeland Financial during the 1st quarter worth approximately $215,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its position in Lakeland Financial by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 14,868 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $884,000 after acquiring an additional 716 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Lakeland Financial by 90.5% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 32,427 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,927,000 after acquiring an additional 15,404 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its position in Lakeland Financial by 25.4% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 48,803 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,901,000 after acquiring an additional 9,894 shares during the period. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in Lakeland Financial by 13.0% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 60,794 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,614,000 after acquiring an additional 6,987 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.15% of the company's stock.

Lakeland Financial Company 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.

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