5,637 Shares in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) Purchased by Bryce Point Capital LLC

Bryce Point Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 5,637 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $976,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LANC. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 243.2% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 83,630 shares of the company's stock worth $14,767,000 after purchasing an additional 59,261 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its stake in Lancaster Colony by 20.5% in the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 305,264 shares of the company's stock worth $52,853,000 after buying an additional 52,030 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Lancaster Colony during the fourth quarter valued at about $8,558,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 62.7% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 100,162 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,342,000 after acquiring an additional 38,583 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,200,002 shares of the company's stock worth $380,908,000 after acquiring an additional 30,987 shares during the period. 66.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on LANC shares. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Lancaster Colony from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lancaster Colony from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on shares of Lancaster Colony from $196.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lancaster Colony currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $211.33.

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Lancaster Colony Stock Up 1.4 %

Lancaster Colony stock traded up $2.38 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $177.80. 32,127 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 136,178. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 12 month low of $163.20 and a 12 month high of $205.41. The stock's fifty day moving average is $183.06 and its 200-day moving average is $181.21. The stock has a market cap of $4.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.33 and a beta of 0.38.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $509.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $495.43 million. Lancaster Colony had a net margin of 8.26% and a return on equity of 19.51%. Lancaster Colony's revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.87 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Lancaster Colony's dividend payout ratio is 66.78%.

Insider Activity at Lancaster Colony

In other Lancaster Colony news, CEO David Alan Ciesinski sold 17,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.19, for a total transaction of $3,250,230.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 54,644 shares in the company, valued at $10,447,386.36. This represents a 23.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 29.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.