Lakeland Financial (LKFN) Could Be a Great Choice

Getting big returns from financial portfolios, whether through stocks, bonds, ETFs, other securities, or a combination of all, is an investor's dream. However, when you're an income investor, your primary focus is generating consistent cash flow from each of your liquid investments.While cash flow can come from bond interest or interest from other types of investments, income investors hone in on dividends. A dividend is the distribution of a company's earnings paid out to shareholders; it's often viewed by its dividend yield, a metric that measures a dividend as a percent of the current stock price. Many academic studies show that dividends make up large portions of long-term returns, and in many cases, dividend contributions surpass one-third of total returns.Lakeland Financial in FocusLakeland Financial (LKFN) is headquartered in Warsaw, and is in the Finance sector. The stock has seen a price change of -15.27% since the start of the year. The holding company for Lake City Bank is paying out a dividend of $0.5 per share at the moment, with a dividend yield of 3.43% compared to the Banks - Midwest industry's yield of 3.28% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.6%.In terms of dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $2 is up 4.2% from last year. Lakeland Financial has increased its dividend 5 times on a year-over-year basis over the last 5 years for an average annual increase of 12.44%. Any future dividend growth will depend on both earnings growth and the company's payout ratio; a payout ratio is the proportion of a firm's annual earnings per share that it pays out as a dividend. Right now, Lakeland Financial's payout ratio is 59%, which means it paid out 59% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.Earnings growth looks solid for LKFN for this fiscal year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 is $3.73 per share, with earnings expected to increase 7.49% from the year ago period.Bottom LineInvestors like dividends for many reasons; they greatly improve stock investing profits, decrease overall portfolio risk, and carry tax advantages, among others. But, not every company offers a quarterly payout.High-growth firms or tech start-ups, for example, rarely provide their shareholders a dividend, while larger, more established companies that have more secure profits are often seen as the best dividend options. During periods of rising interest rates, income investors must be mindful that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle. That said, they can take comfort from the fact that LKFN is not only an attractive dividend play, but is also a compelling investment opportunity with a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).Only $1 to See All Zacks' Buys and SellsWe're not kidding.Several years ago, we shocked our members by offering them 30-day access to all our picks for the total sum of only $1. No obligation to spend another cent.Thousands have taken advantage of this opportunity. Thousands did not - they thought there must be a catch. Yes, we do have a reason. We want you to get acquainted with our portfolio services like Surprise Trader, Stocks Under $10, Technology Innovators,and more, that closed 256 positions with double- and triple-digit gains in 2024 alone.See Stocks Now >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Lakeland Financial Corporation (LKFN): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks