Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Purchases 2,559 Shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 24.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,177 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,559 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $2,281,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 5,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $935,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Choreo LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony in the 4th quarter worth $255,000. Trust Point Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony in the 4th quarter worth $294,000. Boston Trust Walden Corp grew its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 20.5% in the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 305,264 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,853,000 after acquiring an additional 52,030 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Independence Bank of Kentucky bought a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony in the 4th quarter worth $630,000. Institutional investors own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lancaster Colony

In other Lancaster Colony news, CEO David Alan Ciesinski sold 17,000 shares of the company’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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 54,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,447,386.36. This represents a 23.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 29.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Stephens increased their price target on shares of Lancaster Colony from $196.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lancaster Colony from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Loop Capital reduced their price target on shares of Lancaster Colony from $232.00 to $227.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of Lancaster Colony from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $211.33.

Lancaster Colony Stock Up 1.7 %

NASDAQ LANC opened at $194.81 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.37 billion, a PE ratio of 34.24 and a beta of 0.35. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 52 week low of $163.20 and a 52 week high of $209.81. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $178.17 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $181.05.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $2.22 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.28. The business 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 company’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.87 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.8 EPS for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.78%.

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.