Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) Shares Sold by Point72 Asset Management L.P.

Point72 Asset Management L.P. trimmed its holdings in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 73.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 7,858 shares of the company’s stock after selling 21,342 shares during the period. Point72 Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $1,485,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brandes Investment Partners LP increased its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 38.8% during the 2nd quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 3,099 shares of the company’s stock worth $586,000 after purchasing an additional 866 shares during the last quarter. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Lancaster Colony during the second quarter worth about $685,000. Creative Planning increased its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 6.6% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 4,138 shares of the company’s stock valued at $782,000 after acquiring an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 1,055.2% in the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 36,090 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,820,000 after acquiring an additional 32,966 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 36.5% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 16,811 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,168,000 after acquiring an additional 4,493 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on LANC. Loop Capital dropped their target price on shares of Lancaster Colony from $236.00 to $232.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 26th. Stephens cut their price objective on Lancaster Colony from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded 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 assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Lancaster Colony has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $195.75.

Insider Activity

In other Lancaster Colony news, Director Elliot K. Fullen bought 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $169.00 per share, with a total value of $507,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 5,298 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $895,362. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 29.60% of the company’s stock.

Lancaster Colony Price Performance

LANC opened at $175.65 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $182.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $188.26. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 12 month low of $160.01 and a 12 month high of $215.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.44 and a beta of 0.35.

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 company had revenue of $452.83 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $462.70 million. Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 8.47%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th were given a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 9th. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio is presently 74.69%.

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.