GAMMA Investing LLC Takes Position in Lakeland Financial Co. (NASDAQ:LKFN)

GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lakeland Financial Co. (NASDAQ:LKFN) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 899 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $60,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial by 4.1% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 6,516 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $309,000 after purchasing an additional 257 shares during the period. Eagle Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Lakeland Financial by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 72,402 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,436,000 after acquiring an additional 426 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in Lakeland Financial by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 40,160 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,617,000 after acquiring an additional 698 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Lakeland Financial by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 11,506 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $750,000 after acquiring an additional 732 shares during the period. Finally, Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lakeland Financial by 10,016.7% during the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,214 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 1,202 shares in the last quarter. 81.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Steven D. Ross sold 1,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.50, for a total transaction of $83,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 27,501 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,773,814.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Lakeland Financial news, Director Steven D. Ross sold 1,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.50, for a total transaction of $83,850.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 27,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,773,814.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO David M. Findlay sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.26, for a total value of $783,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 14,175 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $925,060.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 27,128 shares of company stock worth $1,768,283. Corporate insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Stephens boosted their price target on Lakeland Financial from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Lakeland Financial from $60.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th.

Lakeland Financial Price Performance

Lakeland Financial stock opened at $60.66 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $62.54 and a 200-day moving average of $60.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.76 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. Lakeland Financial Co. has a 52 week low of $43.05 and a 52 week high of $73.22.

Lakeland Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 25th will be issued a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 24th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.17%. Lakeland Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 53.04%.

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.