Creative Planning Increases Stock Position in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Creative Planning raised its holdings in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 6.6% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,138 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the quarter. Creative Planning’s holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $782,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 32,966 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 36.5% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 16,811 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,168,000 after purchasing an additional 4,493 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Lancaster Colony in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $74,000. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 55.7% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 32,519 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,145,000 after acquiring an additional 11,631 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 305.4% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 9,360 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,769,000 after acquiring an additional 7,051 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on LANC. StockNews.com downgraded Lancaster Colony from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Stephens cut their target price on shares of Lancaster Colony from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of Lancaster Colony from $236.00 to $232.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $195.75.

Lancaster Colony Price Performance

Lancaster Colony stock opened at $180.28 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.40 and a beta of 0.35. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 12-month low of $160.01 and a 12-month high of $215.31. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $180.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $187.18.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last announced 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). The firm 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%. As a group, analysts forecast that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.96 EPS for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 9th were paid a $0.90 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 9th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.00%. Lancaster Colony’s payout ratio is currently 74.69%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Elliot K. Fullen acquired 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was bought at an average price of $169.00 per share, with a total value of $507,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,298 shares in the company, valued at $895,362. The trade was a 100.00 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 29.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.