Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) Short Interest Update

Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 618,200 shares, a drop of 10.5% from the September 15th total of 690,500 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 137,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.5 days. Approximately 3.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Insider Activity at Lancaster Colony

In related news, Director Elliot K. Fullen purchased 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was 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 owns 5,298 shares in the company, valued at $895,362. This trade represents a 100.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 29.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Consolidated Planning Corp boosted its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 4.5% in the second quarter. Consolidated Planning Corp now owns 1,232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $233,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama boosted its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 0.3% in the first quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 25,570 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,309,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 0.6% in the second quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 15,179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,868,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 115.9% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 177 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 1.9% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 5,393 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,019,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. 66.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lancaster Colony Stock Down 0.3 %

LANC opened at $179.92 on Thursday. Lancaster Colony has a 52 week low of $160.01 and a 52 week high of $215.31. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $180.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $186.60. The firm has a market cap of $4.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.33 and a beta of 0.35.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 22nd. The company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. Sell-side analysts expect that Lancaster Colony will post 6.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

LANC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Loop Capital cut their target price on Lancaster Colony from $236.00 to $232.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Stephens cut their target price on Lancaster Colony from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com cut Lancaster Colony from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lancaster Colony has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $195.75.

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.