Moody Aldrich Partners LLC Has $5.06 Million Holdings in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Moody Aldrich Partners LLC trimmed its stake in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 2.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 29,212 shares of the company’s stock after selling 877 shares during the period. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC owned 0.11% of Lancaster Colony worth $5,058,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LANC. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 2,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $442,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 3,805 shares of the company’s stock valued at $672,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 12,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,219,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. AlphaMark Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC now owns 1,686 shares of the company’s stock worth $298,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atria Investments Inc increased its stake in Lancaster Colony by 2.5% in the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 4,060 shares of the company’s stock valued at $717,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on LANC. Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Loop Capital reduced their price target on shares of Lancaster Colony from $232.00 to $227.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $196.00 price objective on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th.

Lancaster Colony Trading Down 2.2 %

NASDAQ:LANC opened at $169.95 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $178.88 and its 200-day moving average is $181.42. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 1-year low of $163.20 and a 1-year high of $215.31. The stock has a market cap of $4.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.40 and a beta of 0.36.

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 analyst estimates of $468.36 million. Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.01% and a net margin of 8.49%. Lancaster Colony’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.70 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.7 EPS for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 5th. This is an increase from Lancaster Colony’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.74%.

Lancaster Colony 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.