Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Purchases 13,822 Shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. increased its position in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 9.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 158,057 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 13,822 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. owned 0.57% of Lancaster Colony worth $27,366,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of LANC. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 40.0% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 12,897 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,271,000 after acquiring an additional 3,686 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Lancaster Colony by 2.3% in the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 2,506 shares of the company’s stock worth $442,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Olympiad Research LP purchased a new stake in Lancaster Colony during the third quarter valued at about $210,000. Smith Thornton Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Lancaster Colony during the third quarter valued at about $362,000. Finally, Atria Investments Inc increased its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Lancaster Colony

In other Lancaster Colony news, CEO David Alan Ciesinski sold 17,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $191.19, for a total transaction of $3,250,230.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 54,644 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,447,386.36. This trade represents a 23.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 29.50% of the company’s stock.

Lancaster Colony Stock Performance

NASDAQ LANC opened at $191.68 on Tuesday. Lancaster Colony Co. has a fifty-two week low of $163.20 and a fifty-two week high of $209.81. The stock has a market cap of $5.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.69 and a beta of 0.35. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $179.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $180.95.

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

Lancaster Colony Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

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