Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. Cuts Stake in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. decreased its position in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC - Free Report) by 12.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 413,838 shares of the company's stock after selling 57,201 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. owned about 1.50% of Lancaster Colony worth $71,652,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LANC. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 243.2% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 83,630 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,767,000 after buying an additional 59,261 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 305,264 shares of the company's stock valued at $52,853,000 after buying an additional 52,030 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony during the fourth quarter worth about $8,558,000. Barclays PLC increased its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 125.5% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 44,189 shares of the company's stock worth $7,803,000 after purchasing an additional 24,589 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony during the third quarter worth about $3,853,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.44% of the company's stock.

Lancaster Colony Price Performance

LANC traded down $2.73 on Tuesday, reaching $180.48. 103,174 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 126,976. The stock has a market cap of $4.98 billion, a PE ratio of 31.72 and a beta of 0.31. Lancaster Colony Co. has a twelve month low of $163.20 and a twelve month high of $209.08. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $181.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $181.26.

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Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly 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. The firm had revenue of $509.30 million for 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 quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.87 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. Lancaster Colony's payout ratio is 66.78%.

Insider Transactions at Lancaster Colony

In other news, CEO David Alan Ciesinski sold 17,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.19, for a total value of $3,250,230.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 54,644 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,447,386.36. This represents a 23.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 29.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on LANC. StockNews.com raised shares of Lancaster Colony from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Lancaster Colony from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. 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 research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $211.33.

Lancaster Colony Company 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.