Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) Given “Hold” Rating at Benchmark

Benchmark reiterated their hold rating on shares of Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) in a research report released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the company. Loop Capital lowered 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. Stephens lowered their price objective on shares of Lancaster Colony from $200.00 to $196.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lancaster Colony from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $193.50.

Lancaster Colony Price Performance

Lancaster Colony stock opened at $182.27 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $5.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.53 and a beta of 0.35. Lancaster Colony has a 12 month low of $161.54 and a 12 month high of $215.31. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $181.21 and its 200-day moving average is $184.70.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.70 by ($0.08). Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.01% and a net margin of 8.49%. The business had revenue of $466.56 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $468.36 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.70 earnings per share. Lancaster Colony’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Lancaster Colony will post 6.72 EPS for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 dividend yield of 2.08%. This is a positive change from Lancaster Colony’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.28%.

Insider Transactions at Lancaster Colony

In related news, Director Elliot K. Fullen bought 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, for a total transaction of $507,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 5,298 shares in the company, valued at $895,362. This trade represents a 130.55 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 29.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lancaster Colony

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony in the second quarter worth $28,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Lancaster Colony by 115.9% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 177 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony during the second quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Lancaster Colony in the 2nd quarter worth about $74,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

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.