Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) Shares Bought by Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc.

Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC - Free Report) by 72.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 86,280 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 36,291 shares during the quarter. Lancaster Colony comprises 1.3% of Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Mesirow Institutional Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.31% of Lancaster Colony worth $14,356,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Lancaster Colony by 12.5% during the third quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,307,612 shares of the company's stock valued at $215,795,000 after acquiring an additional 145,560 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp boosted its stake in Lancaster Colony by 54.5% during the fourth quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 319,366 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,139,000 after buying an additional 112,696 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Lancaster Colony by 46.0% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 328,635 shares of the company's stock valued at $54,235,000 after buying an additional 103,550 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Lancaster Colony by 10.5% during the third quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 596,321 shares of the company's stock worth $98,411,000 after buying an additional 56,787 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Lancaster Colony by 53.3% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 105,454 shares of the company's stock worth $17,403,000 after acquiring an additional 36,671 shares during the last quarter. 66.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Kristin Bird sold 1,207 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were 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 directly 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 is accessible through this hyperlink. 29.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on LANC. StockNews.com raised Lancaster Colony from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and issued a $218.00 price target on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $198.75.

Lancaster Colony Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LANC traded up $1.33 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $197.57. The stock had a trading volume of 82,912 shares, compared to its average volume of 141,023. Lancaster Colony Co. has a one year low of $158.88 and a one year high of $215.31. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $198.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $183.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.99 and a beta of 0.39.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $471.40 million for 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 revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were issued a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 6th. Lancaster Colony's dividend payout ratio is 74.69%.

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.