Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) Rating Reiterated by Benchmark

Benchmark reaffirmed their hold rating on shares of Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) in a research note published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on LANC. Loop Capital cut their price objective on shares of Lancaster Colony from $236.00 to $232.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Stephens cut their price target on shares of Lancaster Colony from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lancaster Colony from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lancaster Colony presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $195.75.

Lancaster Colony Stock Performance

Shares of Lancaster Colony stock opened at $179.29 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $4.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.20 and a beta of 0.35. Lancaster Colony has a one year low of $160.01 and a one year high of $215.31. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $184.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $190.06.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $452.83 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $462.70 million. Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 8.47%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Lancaster Colony will post 6.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 9th will be paid a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. Lancaster Colony’s payout ratio is 74.69%.

Insider Activity at Lancaster Colony

In other Lancaster Colony news, Director Elliot K. Fullen acquired 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $169.00 per share, with a total value of $507,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 5,298 shares in the company, valued at $895,362. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 29.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lancaster Colony

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LANC. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Lancaster Colony in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 115.9% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 177 shares of the company’s stock worth $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 2nd quarter worth about $38,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony during the 4th quarter worth about $67,000. Finally, Clarity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony during the 4th quarter worth about $70,000. 66.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.