Principal Financial Group Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lowered its stake in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 29.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 51,246 shares of the company’s stock after selling 21,433 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.19% of Lancaster Colony worth $9,049,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LANC. Consolidated Planning Corp raised its stake in Lancaster Colony by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. Consolidated Planning Corp now owns 1,232 shares of the company’s stock worth $233,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 2,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $442,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the period. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its stake in Lancaster Colony by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 3,805 shares of the company’s stock valued at $672,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. AlphaMark Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC now owns 1,686 shares of the company’s stock worth $298,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 15,179 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,868,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. 66.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lancaster Colony

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 acquired at an average cost of $169.00 per share, for a total transaction of $507,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,298 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $895,362. The trade was a 130.55 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 29.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Lancaster Colony Stock Down 0.4 %

Lancaster Colony stock opened at $180.04 on Tuesday. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 52-week low of $161.54 and a 52-week high of $215.31. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $180.97 and its 200 day moving average is $184.90. The company has a market cap of $4.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.27 and a beta of 0.35.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.70 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $466.56 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $468.36 million. Lancaster Colony had a net margin of 8.49% and a return on equity of 19.01%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.70 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. This is a boost from Lancaster Colony’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.11%. Lancaster Colony’s payout ratio is currently 62.28%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LANC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stephens reduced their price objective on shares of Lancaster Colony from $200.00 to $196.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Loop Capital reduced their price target on shares of Lancaster Colony from $232.00 to $227.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lancaster Colony from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a report on Friday, November 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lancaster Colony currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $193.50.

Lancaster Colony Company 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.