London Co. of Virginia Invests $60.02 Million in The Marzetti Company $MZTI

London Co. of Virginia purchased a new position in shares of The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 365,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $60,015,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in MZTI. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marzetti during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Marzetti during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Marzetti during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Lodestone Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Marzetti during the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Marzetti during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. 66.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Marzetti Stock Performance

Shares of MZTI stock opened at $108.92 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $121.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $146.60. The Marzetti Company has a twelve month low of $105.80 and a twelve month high of $190.96. The company has a market capitalization of $2.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.05 and a beta of 0.33.

Marzetti Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Marzetti’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Marzetti

In related news, insider Luis Viso sold 1,221 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.31, for a total value of $133,467.51. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $210,312.44. This trade represents a 38.82% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 29.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on MZTI shares. Stephens cut their price target on Marzetti from $160.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. DA Davidson cut their price objective on Marzetti from $184.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Marzetti from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Marzetti currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $169.33.

About Marzetti

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.