Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) Shares Sold by Bridgewater Associates LP

Bridgewater Associates LP decreased its position in shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC - Free Report) by 66.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,187 shares of the company's stock after selling 10,238 shares during the quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP's holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $916,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Blair William & Co. IL grew its position in Lancaster Colony by 2,386.6% during the second quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 172,075 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,517,000 after buying an additional 165,155 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc. increased its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 4,189.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 163,800 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,922,000 after purchasing an additional 159,981 shares in the last quarter. F M Investments LLC acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony in the 2nd quarter worth about $7,997,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in Lancaster Colony by 1,055.2% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 36,090 shares of the company's stock worth $6,820,000 after purchasing an additional 32,966 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 5.1% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 520,335 shares of the company's stock valued at $98,326,000 after purchasing an additional 25,072 shares during the period. 66.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LANC. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $196.00 target price on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Benchmark reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lancaster Colony from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price objective on Lancaster Colony from $232.00 to $227.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lancaster Colony currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $202.67.

Lancaster Colony Trading Up 0.8 %

LANC traded up $1.46 on Monday, hitting $187.30. 101,570 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 130,971. The stock has a market cap of $5.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.15 and a beta of 0.35. Lancaster Colony Co. has a fifty-two week low of $161.54 and a fifty-two week high of $215.31. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $182.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $184.19.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.70 by ($0.08). Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.01% and a net margin of 8.49%. The company had revenue of $466.56 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $468.36 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.70 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.72 EPS for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.03%. This is a positive change from Lancaster Colony's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. Lancaster Colony's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.28%.

Lancaster Colony Profile

Lancaster Colony Corporation engages in the manufacturing and marketing of specialty food products for the retail and foodservice channels in the United States. It operates in two segments, Retail and Foodservice. The company offers frozen garlic bread under the New York BRAND Bakery; frozen Parkerhouse style yeast and dinner rolls under the Sister Schubert's brand; salad dressings under the Marzetti, Simply Dressed, Cardini's, and Girard's brands; vegetable and fruit dips under the Marzetti brand; croutons and salad toppings under the New York BRAND Bakery, Chatham Village, and Marzetti brands; and frozen pasta under the Marzetti Frozen Pasta brand.