SG Americas Securities LLC Has $4.05 Million Position in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 336.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,393 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,030 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC owned about 0.08% of Lancaster Colony worth $4,050,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Lancaster Colony during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Lancaster Colony by 56.4% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 280 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony during the second quarter worth $74,000. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 66.7% in the third quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $177,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Lancaster Colony Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LANC opened at $172.00 on Friday. Lancaster Colony Co. has a fifty-two week low of $163.20 and a fifty-two week high of $215.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.76 and a beta of 0.36. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $179.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $181.63.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) 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). Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.01% and a net margin of 8.49%. The company had revenue of $466.56 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $468.36 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.70 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th were paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. This is a positive change from Lancaster Colony’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.21%. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.74%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on LANC shares. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $196.00 price objective on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, 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.

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.