Ade LLC Sells 900 Shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Ade LLC trimmed its stake in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 15.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,782 shares of the company’s stock after selling 900 shares during the quarter. Ade LLC’s holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $796,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 31.0% during the first quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 2,326 shares of the company’s stock valued at $298,000 after purchasing an additional 550 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 5.4% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 39,357 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,870,000 after purchasing an additional 2,004 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates lifted its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 10.8% during the first quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 19,450 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,901,000 after purchasing an additional 1,895 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 6.0% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,852 shares of the company’s stock valued at $425,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 39.4% in the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 22,578 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,368,000 after acquiring an additional 6,376 shares during the period. 66.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Lancaster Colony

In related news, insider Kristin Bird sold 1,207 shares of Lancaster Colony stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $683,172.36. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 29.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Stephens downgraded Lancaster Colony from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the company 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 assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $198.75.

Lancaster Colony Stock Down 1.0 %

LANC traded down $1.78 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $183.62. The company had a trading volume of 138,112 shares, compared to its average volume of 135,331. The business has a 50-day moving average of $199.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $180.84. The company has a market cap of $5.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.72 and a beta of 0.35. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 1 year low of $158.88 and a 1 year high of $220.65.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The company reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.66 by $0.27. Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 17.37% and a net margin of 6.92%. The business had revenue of $485.92 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $489.00 million. On average, equities research analysts predict that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.47 EPS for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 6th. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.92%.

Lancaster Colony 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.