Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) Upgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) was upgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on LANC. Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Loop Capital reduced their target price on shares of Lancaster Colony from $232.00 to $227.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Stephens increased their price target on Lancaster Colony from $196.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday.

Lancaster Colony Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of LANC opened at $188.71 on Thursday. Lancaster Colony has a twelve month low of $163.20 and a twelve month high of $209.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.65 and a beta of 0.35. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $177.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $180.92.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.28. Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.01% and a net margin of 8.49%. The company had revenue of $509.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $495.43 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.87 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Lancaster Colony will post 6.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Lancaster Colony

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in Lancaster Colony by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 5,604 shares of the company’s stock worth $970,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 2.3% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 2,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $442,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 1.8% during the third quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 3,805 shares of the company’s stock worth $672,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 0.5% in the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 12,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,219,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,280 shares of the company’s stock valued at $222,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

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.