State of Alaska Department of Revenue Trims Stock Holdings in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

State of Alaska Department of Revenue lowered its position in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 8.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,199 shares of the company’s stock after selling 205 shares during the quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $365,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of LANC. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony during the fourth quarter worth approximately $46,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony during the second quarter worth $47,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony during the first quarter worth $50,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony during the third quarter worth $71,000. Finally, State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony during the fourth quarter worth $96,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Lancaster Colony

In related news, insider Kristin Bird sold 1,207 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.66, for a total transaction of $232,540.62. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $683,172.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 29.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Stephens lowered Lancaster Colony from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $205.00 to $218.00 in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $198.75.

Lancaster Colony Stock Performance

Lancaster Colony stock opened at $196.11 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.90 and a beta of 0.35. Lancaster Colony Co. has a fifty-two week low of $158.88 and a fifty-two week high of $220.65. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $200.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $180.32.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $485.92 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $489.00 million. Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 17.37% and a net margin of 6.92%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 7th were paid a dividend of $0.90 per share. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 6th. Lancaster Colony’s payout ratio is currently 76.92%.

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.