Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) Upgraded to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning.

Separately, Stephens reaffirmed an equal weight rating and set a $218.00 price objective on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research report on Friday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $198.75.

Lancaster Colony Trading Down 0.3 %

NASDAQ LANC opened at $191.50 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.73 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a 50 day moving average of $199.06 and a 200-day moving average of $182.30. Lancaster Colony has a 1-year low of $158.88 and a 1-year high of $220.65.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $471.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $467.90 million. Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 18.96% and a net margin of 7.10%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Lancaster Colony will post 6.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 6th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.69%.

Insider Activity at Lancaster Colony

In other Lancaster Colony news, insider Kristin Bird sold 1,207 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.66, for a total transaction of $232,540.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $683,172.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 29.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lancaster Colony

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 4,127 shares of the company’s stock valued at $687,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Lancaster Colony by 6.5% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 952 shares of the company’s stock valued at $198,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 1.2% during the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 5,485 shares of the company’s stock valued at $905,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama grew its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 0.3% during the first quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 25,570 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,309,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System increased its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 4,932 shares of the company’s stock valued at $821,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

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.