Victory Capital Management Inc. Buys 86,994 Shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 26.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 415,629 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 86,994 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $69,157,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 4,127 shares of the company’s stock valued at $687,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 1.2% in the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 5,485 shares of the company’s stock valued at $905,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama boosted its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 25,503 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,243,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 11.8% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 894 shares of the company’s stock worth $149,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System raised its stake in Lancaster Colony by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 4,932 shares of the company’s stock valued at $821,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Lancaster Colony Price Performance

LANC opened at $191.50 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $199.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $182.30. Lancaster Colony Co. has a 1 year low of $158.88 and a 1 year high of $220.65. The company has a market capitalization of $5.27 billion, a PE ratio of 39.73 and a beta of 0.39.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The company reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by $0.02. Lancaster Colony had a net margin of 7.10% and a return on equity of 18.96%. The company had revenue of $471.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $467.90 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.89 earnings per share. Lancaster Colony’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $0.90 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 6th. This represents a $3.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio is presently 74.69%.

Insider Activity

In other Lancaster Colony news, insider Kristin Bird sold 1,207 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.66, for a total transaction of $232,540.62. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,546 shares in the company, valued at approximately $683,172.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 29.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Lancaster Colony from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $218.00 target price on shares of Lancaster Colony in a report on Friday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $198.75.

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.