CHICAGO TRUST Co NA Lowers Position in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

CHICAGO TRUST Co NA trimmed its position in shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 20.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,505 shares of the company’s stock after selling 380 shares during the quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA’s holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $261,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Anthracite Investment Company Inc. bought a new stake in Lancaster Colony in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,204,000. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in shares of Lancaster Colony in the third quarter valued at approximately $2,244,000. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 40.0% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 12,897 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,271,000 after acquiring an additional 3,686 shares during the last quarter. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Lancaster Colony during the second quarter worth $685,000. Finally, Atria Investments Inc boosted its position in Lancaster Colony by 2.5% in the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 4,060 shares of the company’s stock worth $717,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Lancaster Colony Stock Performance

Shares of LANC opened at $168.09 on Tuesday. Lancaster Colony Co. has a fifty-two week low of $163.20 and a fifty-two week high of $215.31. The business has a 50-day moving average of $182.82 and a 200 day moving average of $182.65. The firm has a market cap of $4.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.08 and a beta of 0.36.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last posted its 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). The business had revenue of $466.56 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $468.36 million. Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.01% and a net margin of 8.49%. Lancaster Colony’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.70 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. This is an increase from Lancaster Colony’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Loop Capital lowered their target price on Lancaster Colony from $232.00 to $227.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $196.00 target price on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th.

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.