William Blair Investment Management LLC Trims Holdings in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

William Blair Investment Management LLC cut its position in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC - Free Report) by 13.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 838,368 shares of the company's stock after selling 134,118 shares during the quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC owned about 3.04% of Lancaster Colony worth $145,155,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony in the 4th quarter valued at about $317,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 5.7% in the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 4,021 shares of the company's stock worth $696,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 4,538 shares of the company's stock worth $786,000 after purchasing an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP raised its stake in Lancaster Colony by 23.2% in the fourth quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 4,427 shares of the company's stock valued at $766,000 after purchasing an additional 834 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC lifted its position in Lancaster Colony by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 6,455 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,118,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. 66.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Remove Ads

Lancaster Colony Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of LANC stock traded up $1.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $175.33. The stock had a trading volume of 736,672 shares, compared to its average volume of 129,395. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $181.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $181.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.83 billion, a PE ratio of 30.81 and a beta of 0.31. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 52-week low of $163.20 and a 52-week high of $209.08.

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

Lancaster Colony Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Lancaster Colony's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lancaster Colony

In other Lancaster Colony news, CEO David Alan Ciesinski sold 17,000 shares of Lancaster Colony stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.19, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 23.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 29.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Lancaster Colony from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. DA Davidson raised their price objective on Lancaster Colony from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Stephens upped their target price on Lancaster Colony from $196.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average 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.