Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Acquires 443 Shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,378 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 443 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $1,277,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Lancaster Colony in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Lancaster Colony by 56.4% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 280 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its position in Lancaster Colony by 80.4% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 893 shares of the company’s stock valued at $155,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Lancaster Colony by 62.1% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 932 shares of the company’s stock worth $165,000 after purchasing an additional 357 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Olympiad Research LP purchased a new position in shares of Lancaster Colony in the 3rd quarter worth about $210,000. 66.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lancaster Colony Price Performance

Shares of Lancaster Colony stock opened at $191.68 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.69 and a beta of 0.35. Lancaster Colony Co. has a one year low of $163.20 and a one year high of $209.81. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $179.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $180.95.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $509.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $495.43 million. Lancaster Colony had a net margin of 8.26% and a return on equity of 19.51%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.87 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.78%.

Insider Transactions at Lancaster Colony

In other Lancaster Colony news, CEO David Alan Ciesinski sold 17,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.19, for a total transaction of $3,250,230.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 54,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,447,386.36. This represents a 23.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 29.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com raised Lancaster Colony from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Lancaster Colony from $196.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their target price on shares of Lancaster Colony from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $211.33.

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.