Principal Financial Group Inc. Lowers Holdings in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its holdings in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC - Free Report) by 29.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 51,246 shares of the company's stock after selling 21,433 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.19% of Lancaster Colony worth $9,049,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in Lancaster Colony in the second quarter valued at about $74,000. nVerses Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $113,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 10.8% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,055 shares of the company's stock worth $186,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Olympiad Research LP acquired a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $210,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LANC has been the subject of several research reports. Loop Capital reduced their price objective on Lancaster Colony from $232.00 to $227.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Benchmark reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Stephens restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $196.00 target price on shares of Lancaster Colony in a report on Tuesday, November 19th.

Lancaster Colony Price Performance

Lancaster Colony stock remained flat at $173.14 during mid-day trading on Tuesday. The company's stock had a trading volume of 84,869 shares, compared to its average volume of 130,476. Lancaster Colony Co. has a one year low of $162.21 and a one year high of $215.31. The firm has a market cap of $4.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.96 and a beta of 0.35. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $184.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $183.77.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC - Get Free Report) last posted 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 company had revenue of $466.56 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $468.36 million. Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.01% and a net margin of 8.49%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.70 EPS. Analysts forecast that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.7 EPS for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.19%. This is a positive change from Lancaster Colony's previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Lancaster Colony's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.74%.

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.