Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Has $61.44 Million Stake in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans trimmed its holdings in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 11.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 354,857 shares of the company’s stock after selling 45,916 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned about 1.29% of Lancaster Colony worth $61,440,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of LANC. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 243.2% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 83,630 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,767,000 after buying an additional 59,261 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp boosted its position in Lancaster Colony by 20.5% during the fourth quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 305,264 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,853,000 after purchasing an additional 52,030 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $8,558,000. Barclays PLC boosted its position in Lancaster Colony by 125.5% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 44,189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,803,000 after purchasing an additional 24,589 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in Lancaster Colony during the third quarter valued at approximately $3,853,000. 66.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO David Alan Ciesinski sold 17,000 shares of Lancaster Colony stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $191.19, for a total value of $3,250,230.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 29.50% of the company’s stock.

Lancaster Colony Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LANC opened at $176.92 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.88 billion, a PE ratio of 31.09 and a beta of 0.31. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $181.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $181.30. Lancaster Colony Co. has a fifty-two week low of $163.20 and a fifty-two week high of $209.08.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $2.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $509.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $495.43 million. Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.51% and a net margin of 8.26%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.87 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Lancaster Colony Co. will post 6.8 EPS for the current year.

Lancaster Colony Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.15%. Lancaster Colony’s payout ratio is 66.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on LANC. StockNews.com raised Lancaster Colony from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Lancaster Colony from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Stephens lifted their price target on Lancaster Colony from $196.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $211.33.

Lancaster Colony 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.