Global Retirement Partners LLC Grows Holdings in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its stake in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 26.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,932 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 410 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC’s holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $335,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LANC. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony during the 4th quarter worth $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 56.4% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 280 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 80.4% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 893 shares of the company’s stock worth $155,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 62.1% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 932 shares of the company’s stock valued at $165,000 after buying an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Olympiad Research LP bought a new stake in Lancaster Colony in the third quarter valued at about $210,000. 66.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on LANC shares. Loop Capital decreased their target price on Lancaster Colony from $232.00 to $227.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. DA Davidson lifted 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 increased their target price on shares of Lancaster Colony from $196.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Lancaster Colony from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $211.33.

Lancaster Colony Price Performance

Shares of LANC opened at $194.47 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $5.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.18 and a beta of 0.35. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 12 month low of $163.20 and a 12 month high of $209.81. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $178.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $181.00.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $509.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $495.43 million. Lancaster Colony had a net margin of 8.26% and a return on equity of 19.51%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.87 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.95%. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.78%.

Insider Transactions at Lancaster Colony

In related news, CEO David Alan Ciesinski sold 17,000 shares of Lancaster Colony stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $10,447,386.36. The trade was a 23.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 29.50% of the company’s stock.

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.