Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) Shares Sold by Squarepoint Ops LLC

Squarepoint Ops LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC - Free Report) by 96.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,501 shares of the company's stock after selling 61,572 shares during the quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC's holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $433,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 10.2% during 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 during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 12,720 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,202,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the period. Man Group plc boosted its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 366.6% during the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 50,241 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,699,000 after acquiring an additional 39,474 shares during the period. Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in Lancaster Colony during the 4th quarter valued at $443,000. Finally, OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp purchased a new position in Lancaster Colony during the 4th quarter valued at $329,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.44% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on LANC shares. Benchmark upgraded Lancaster Colony from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $185.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. DA Davidson boosted their price target on Lancaster Colony from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered Lancaster Colony from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Stephens reduced their target price on Lancaster Colony from $200.00 to $195.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $203.50.

Lancaster Colony Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of LANC stock traded up $0.84 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $167.93. The stock had a trading volume of 109,605 shares, compared to its average volume of 149,666. The business's fifty day moving average is $173.64 and its 200-day moving average is $178.65. The firm has a market cap of $4.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.51 and a beta of 0.47. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 1-year low of $156.14 and a 1-year high of $202.63.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.54 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.61 by ($0.07). Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.51% and a net margin of 8.26%. The company had revenue of $457.84 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $483.47 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.44 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. Lancaster Colony's dividend payout ratio is currently 61.79%.

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.