ProShare Advisors LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 10.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 238,055 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 22,019 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC’s holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $41,217,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 5,604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $970,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,280 shares of the company’s stock valued at $222,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,609 shares of the company’s stock valued at $279,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 2,323 shares of the company’s stock valued at $402,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Lancaster Colony by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 15,978 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,766,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Lancaster Colony Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LANC opened at $166.93 on Friday. Lancaster Colony Co. has a one year low of $156.14 and a one year high of $202.63. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $177.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $180.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.60 billion, a PE ratio of 29.34 and a beta of 0.50.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last issued its quarterly 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 net margin of 8.26% and a return on equity of 19.51%. The firm had revenue of $457.84 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $483.47 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.44 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on LANC shares. StockNews.com cut Lancaster Colony from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Benchmark raised Lancaster Colony from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Stephens cut their price objective 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. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Lancaster Colony from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $203.50.

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.