Congress Wealth Management LLC DE Sells 2,352 Shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Congress Wealth Management LLC DE decreased its position in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC - Free Report) by 50.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,352 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,352 shares during the period. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE's holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $407,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Lancaster Colony during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Lancaster Colony by 56.4% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 280 shares of the company's stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Lancaster Colony by 1,078.9% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 448 shares of the company's stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 410 shares during the period. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 80.4% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 893 shares of the company's stock worth $155,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 62.1% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 932 shares of the company's stock valued at $165,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.44% of the company's stock.

Lancaster Colony Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:LANC traded down $1.44 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $173.76. 18,933 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 134,185. Lancaster Colony Co. has a fifty-two week low of $163.20 and a fifty-two week high of $206.95. The stock has a market cap of $4.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.64 and a beta of 0.31. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $182.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $181.32.

Remove Ads

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.28. Lancaster Colony had a net margin of 8.26% and a return on equity of 19.51%. The business had revenue of $509.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $495.43 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.87 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.8 EPS for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.19%. Lancaster Colony's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

About Lancaster Colony

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.