1,873 Shares in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) Acquired by Point72 DIFC Ltd

Point72 DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 1,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $331,000.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in LANC. Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 37.4% during the third quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 10,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,907,000 after purchasing an additional 2,942 shares in the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP lifted its stake in Lancaster Colony by 170.0% in the 3rd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 19,376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,421,000 after acquiring an additional 12,199 shares in the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony during the third quarter worth $438,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 958.7% in the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 17,447 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,081,000 after acquiring an additional 15,799 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. grew its stake in Lancaster Colony by 883.2% in the third quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 3,874 shares of the company’s stock valued at $684,000 after purchasing an additional 3,480 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Lancaster Colony Trading Down 2.4 %

Shares of LANC opened at $179.73 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $182.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $184.04. The company has a market cap of $4.96 billion, a PE ratio of 31.10 and a beta of 0.35. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 12-month low of $161.54 and a 12-month high of $215.31.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.70 by ($0.08). Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.01% and a net margin of 8.49%. The business had revenue of $466.56 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $468.36 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.70 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.11%. This is a positive change from Lancaster Colony’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $196.00 price objective on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Loop Capital reduced their target price on Lancaster Colony from $232.00 to $227.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Lancaster Colony from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $202.67.

About Lancaster Colony

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.