Lakeland Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:LBAI) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Lakeland Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:LBAI) saw a significant decrease in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,180,000 shares, a decrease of 9.2% from the March 15th total of 1,300,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 293,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.0 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lakeland Bancorp

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LBAI. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lakeland Bancorp in the first quarter worth about $29,000. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lakeland Bancorp by 4,563.6% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,052 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 2,008 shares in the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in Lakeland Bancorp by 4,356.0% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 2,228 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 2,178 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in Lakeland Bancorp by 212.5% in the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,597 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 1,766 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in Lakeland Bancorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. 59.62% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lakeland Bancorp Price Performance

NASDAQ LBAI opened at $11.29 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $735.54 million, a PE ratio of 8.82 and a beta of 0.85. Lakeland Bancorp has a 52 week low of $10.65 and a 52 week high of $16.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $12.00 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $12.74.

Lakeland Bancorp (NASDAQ:LBAI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.30. The business had revenue of $72.09 million for the quarter. Lakeland Bancorp had a net margin of 16.42% and a return on equity of 7.43%. Research analysts predict that Lakeland Bancorp will post 1.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Lakeland Bancorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 5th were issued a $0.145 dividend. This represents a $0.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 2nd. Lakeland Bancorp’s payout ratio is 45.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Lakeland Bancorp from $17.50 to $16.65 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lakeland Bancorp from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th.

About Lakeland Bancorp

Lakeland Bancorp, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Lakeland Bank that provides financial products and services for businesses and consumers. It provides commercial banking services, including savings, money market, and time accounts, as well as demand deposits. The company also offers lending services, including commercial real estate loans, commercial and industrial loans, short and medium term loans, lines of credit, letters of credit, inventory and accounts receivable financing, real estate construction loans, residential mortgage loans, small business administration loans, and merchant credit card services; financing solutions to small and medium-sized companies; online banking, mobile banking, and wire transfer services to the business community and municipal relationships; and cash management services, such as remote capture of deposits and overnight sweep repurchase agreements.