Independent Director Michael Kubacki Sold A Bunch Of Shares In Lakeland Financial

We wouldn't blame Lakeland Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:LKFN) shareholders if they were a little worried about the fact that Michael Kubacki, the Independent Director recently netted about US$1.9m selling shares at an average price of US$71.51. That sale reduced their total holding by 40% which is hardly insignificant, but far from the worst we've seen.

Check out our latest analysis for Lakeland Financial

Lakeland Financial Insider Transactions Over The Last Year

In fact, the recent sale by Michael Kubacki was the biggest sale of Lakeland Financial shares made by an insider individual in the last twelve months, according to our records. So we know that an insider sold shares at around the present share price of US$66.96. While insider selling is a negative, to us, it is more negative if the shares are sold at a lower price. In this case, the big sale took place at around the current price, so it's not too bad (but it's still not a positive).

Happily, we note that in the last year insiders paid US$4.0m for 72.05k shares. But insiders sold 36.57k shares worth US$2.6m. In total, Lakeland Financial insiders bought more than they sold over the last year. The average buy price was around US$55.50. To my mind it is good that insiders have invested their own money in the company. But we must note that the investments were made at well below today's share price. The chart below shows insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

Lakeland Financial is not the only stock that insiders are buying. For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket.

Insider Ownership Of Lakeland Financial

Another way to test the alignment between the leaders of a company and other shareholders is to look at how many shares they own. A high insider ownership often makes company leadership more mindful of shareholder interests. Lakeland Financial insiders own about US$56m worth of shares. That equates to 3.3% of the company. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, it's enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders.

What Might The Insider Transactions At Lakeland Financial Tell Us?

The stark truth for Lakeland Financial is that there has been more insider selling than insider buying in the last three months. But we take heart from prior transactions. It's good to see insiders are shareholders. So the recent selling doesn't worry us too much. While we like knowing what's going on with the insider's ownership and transactions, we make sure to also consider what risks are facing a stock before making any investment decision. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Lakeland Financial (of which 1 is a bit concerning!) you should know about.

Of course Lakeland Financial may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality companies.

For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.