The Marzetti Company $MZTI Stock Position Raised by Landscape Capital Management L.L.C.

Key Points

• Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. increased its stake in The Marzetti Company by 176.9% during the first quarter, owning approximately 0.08% of the company worth $3,804,000 following the purchase of an additional 13,887 shares.
• Equities research analysts have mixed views on Marzetti, with ratings ranging from a "buy" rating from Benchmark, which boosted the target price to $200, to a "hold" rating from Wall Street Zen.
• Marzetti announced a quarterly dividend of $0.95, which will be paid out on September 30th, representing an annualized yield of 2.1% and a payout ratio of 62.60%.

Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. lifted its stake in shares of The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI - Free Report) by 176.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 21,736 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 13,887 shares during the quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. owned about 0.08% of Marzetti worth $3,804,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. London Co. of Virginia boosted its position in shares of Marzetti by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. London Co. of Virginia now owns 450,493 shares of the company's stock worth $77,998,000 after purchasing an additional 12,500 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Marzetti by 11.1% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 290,133 shares of the company's stock worth $50,234,000 after purchasing an additional 28,965 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its position in Marzetti by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 238,055 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,217,000 after acquiring an additional 22,019 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Marzetti by 6.4% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 200,873 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,153,000 after acquiring an additional 12,015 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bahl & Gaynor Inc. lifted its position in Marzetti by 14.6% in the 1st quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 181,084 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,690,000 after acquiring an additional 23,027 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on MZTI shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Marzetti from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Benchmark raised their price target on shares of Marzetti from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of Marzetti in a research report on Thursday, August 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $206.00.

Marzetti Stock Down 0.7%

NASDAQ MZTI traded down $1.30 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $181.30. The company had a trading volume of 22,058 shares, compared to its average volume of 161,939. The Marzetti Company has a fifty-two week low of $156.14 and a fifty-two week high of $202.63. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $175.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $176.50. The firm has a market cap of $4.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.87 and a beta of 0.43.

Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 21st. The company reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.02. Marzetti had a return on equity of 18.87% and a net margin of 8.77%.The firm had revenue of $475.43 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $455.26 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.34 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that The Marzetti Company will post 6.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Marzetti Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 8th will be given a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 8th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Marzetti's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.60%.

Marzetti 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.