American Century Companies Inc. Increases Holdings in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 8.7% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 11,564 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 925 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc.’s holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $2,185,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony during the second quarter worth about $1,528,000. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony in the 1st quarter valued at about $864,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony in the 1st quarter valued at about $868,000. Foguth Wealth Management LLC. acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony in the 1st quarter valued at about $862,000. Finally, Leeward Investments LLC MA increased its position in Lancaster Colony by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA now owns 51,981 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,823,000 after acquiring an additional 2,771 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lancaster Colony

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on LANC. Loop Capital dropped their price target on Lancaster Colony from $236.00 to $232.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Stephens dropped their target price on Lancaster Colony from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com cut Lancaster Colony from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lancaster Colony currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $195.75.

Lancaster Colony Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LANC opened at $178.72 on Friday. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 12 month low of $160.01 and a 12 month high of $215.31. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $183.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $188.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.08 and a beta of 0.35.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by ($0.06). Lancaster Colony had a net margin of 8.47% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The company had revenue of $452.83 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $462.70 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.96 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, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be issued a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 74.69%.

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.