William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. Buys New Shares in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 3,625 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $685,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of LANC. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lancaster Colony during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 115.9% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 177 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lancaster Colony during the second quarter valued at about $38,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Lancaster Colony during the second quarter valued at about $74,000. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. acquired a new position in shares of Lancaster Colony during the fourth quarter valued at about $67,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Lancaster Colony Stock Performance

Shares of LANC stock opened at $178.72 on Monday. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 52-week low of $160.01 and a 52-week high of $215.31. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $183.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $188.83. The company has a market capitalization of $4.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.08 and a beta of 0.35.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The company reported $1.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by ($0.06). Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.61% and a net margin of 8.47%. The firm had revenue of $452.83 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $462.70 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 9th will be given a $0.90 dividend. This represents a $3.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 9th. Lancaster Colony’s payout ratio is 74.69%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on LANC. Stephens dropped their price objective on shares of Lancaster Colony from $205.00 to $200.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Loop Capital decreased their target price on shares of Lancaster Colony from $236.00 to $232.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 26th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lancaster Colony from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $195.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Elliot K. Fullen bought 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 27th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $169.00 per share, for a total transaction of $507,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,298 shares in the company, valued at $895,362. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 29.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.