Raymond James Financial Inc. Makes New $8.56 Million Investment in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 49,430 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,558,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.18% of Lancaster Colony at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Lancaster Colony Stock Up 0.5 %

Lancaster Colony stock opened at $191.11 on Wednesday. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 52-week low of $163.20 and a 52-week high of $202.63. The firm has a market cap of $5.27 billion, a PE ratio of 33.59 and a beta of 0.38. The company's 50 day moving average is $183.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $181.68.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.28. Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.51% and a net margin of 8.26%. The business had revenue of $509.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $495.43 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.87 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Lancaster Colony's dividend payout ratio is presently 66.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on LANC shares. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of Lancaster Colony from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Stephens raised their price target 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. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Lancaster Colony from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $211.33.

Insider Activity at Lancaster Colony

In other Lancaster Colony news, CEO David Alan Ciesinski sold 17,000 shares of the 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 54,644 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,447,386.36. This represents a 23.73 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 29.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.

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