Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) Receives Consensus Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC - Get Free Report) have earned a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the five analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $193.50.

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Benchmark reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Stephens reduced their price target on shares of Lancaster Colony from $200.00 to $196.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com cut shares of Lancaster Colony from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Loop Capital cut their target price on Lancaster Colony from $232.00 to $227.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lancaster Colony

In related news, Director Elliot K. Fullen acquired 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $169.00 per share, with a total value of $507,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,298 shares of the company's stock, valued at $895,362. The trade was a 100.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 29.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lancaster Colony

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,528,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in Lancaster Colony in the first quarter valued at $868,000. Leeward Investments LLC MA raised its stake in Lancaster Colony by 5.6% in the second quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA now owns 51,981 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,823,000 after buying an additional 2,771 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Lancaster Colony during the 2nd quarter worth about $658,000. Finally, William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lancaster Colony during the 2nd quarter worth about $685,000. 66.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lancaster Colony Trading Up 4.7 %

Lancaster Colony stock traded up $8.93 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $200.28. 227,857 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 137,020. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.65 and a beta of 0.35. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $178.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $184.83. Lancaster Colony has a fifty-two week low of $161.54 and a fifty-two week high of $215.31.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.70 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $466.56 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $468.36 million. Lancaster Colony had a net margin of 8.49% and a return on equity of 19.01%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.70 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Lancaster Colony will post 6.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. This is an increase from Lancaster Colony's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.90%. Lancaster Colony's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.28%.

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.