Atom Investors LP Has $643,000 Holdings in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Atom Investors LP lessened its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC - Free Report) by 69.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,643 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,474 shares during the quarter. Atom Investors LP's holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $643,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 5.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 520,335 shares of the company's stock worth $98,326,000 after acquiring an additional 25,072 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in Lancaster Colony by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 306,080 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,840,000 after purchasing an additional 15,962 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in Lancaster Colony by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 241,646 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,664,000 after purchasing an additional 4,327 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL boosted its stake in Lancaster Colony by 2,386.6% during the 2nd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 172,075 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,517,000 after purchasing an additional 165,155 shares during the period. Finally, Wesbanco Bank Inc. boosted its stake in Lancaster Colony by 4,189.1% during 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 during the period. Institutional investors own 66.44% of the company's stock.

Lancaster Colony Stock Performance

LANC traded down $2.03 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $184.60. The stock had a trading volume of 85,453 shares, compared to its average volume of 130,652. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.94 and a beta of 0.35. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $182.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $184.13. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 52 week low of $161.54 and a 52 week high of $215.31.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.70 by ($0.08). The firm had revenue of $466.56 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.70 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.06%. This is a positive change from Lancaster Colony's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. Lancaster Colony's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LANC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Loop Capital decreased their target price on Lancaster Colony from $232.00 to $227.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Benchmark reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. StockNews.com cut Lancaster Colony from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $196.00 price target on shares of Lancaster Colony in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $202.67.

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.