Ade LLC Sells 900 Shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Ade LLC decreased its position in shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 15.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,782 shares of the company’s stock after selling 900 shares during the quarter. Ade LLC’s holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $796,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 54.5% in the fourth quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 319,366 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,139,000 after acquiring an additional 112,696 shares during the last quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Lancaster Colony in the third quarter worth about $1,388,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 53.3% in the third 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. UBS Group AG lifted its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 34.5% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 43,722 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,215,000 after acquiring an additional 11,208 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in shares of Lancaster Colony in the third quarter worth about $555,000. Institutional investors own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Lancaster Colony

In other news, insider Kristin Bird sold 1,207 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the insider now owns 3,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $683,172.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 29.60% of the company’s stock.

Lancaster Colony Trading Down 1.0 %

NASDAQ:LANC traded down $1.78 on Thursday, reaching $183.62. 138,112 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 135,331. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.72 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s 50 day moving average is $199.98 and its 200-day moving average is $180.84. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 1-year low of $158.88 and a 1-year high of $220.65.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $485.92 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $489.00 million. Lancaster Colony had a net margin of 6.92% and a return on equity of 17.37%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 6th. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Stephens downgraded Lancaster Colony from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $205.00 to $218.00 in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $198.75.

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.