Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Takes $220,000 Position in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 1,247 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $220,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of LANC. Blair William & Co. IL boosted its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 2,386.6% in the second quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 172,075 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,517,000 after acquiring an additional 165,155 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 4,189.1% in the third quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 163,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,922,000 after buying an additional 159,981 shares in the last quarter. F M Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Lancaster Colony in the second quarter valued at approximately $7,997,000. 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 during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 5.1% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 520,335 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,326,000 after purchasing an additional 25,072 shares in the last quarter. 66.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lancaster Colony Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of Lancaster Colony stock opened at $185.84 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.12 billion, a PE ratio of 32.15 and a beta of 0.35. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 12 month low of $161.54 and a 12 month high of $215.31. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $182.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $184.19.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.70 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $466.56 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $468.36 million. Lancaster Colony had a net margin of 8.49% and a return on equity of 19.01%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.70 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. This is an increase from Lancaster Colony’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.04%. Lancaster Colony’s payout ratio is currently 62.28%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. StockNews.com downgraded Lancaster Colony from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of Lancaster Colony from $232.00 to $227.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $196.00 price target on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $202.67.

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.