GSA Capital Partners LLP Buys 5,540 Shares of Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC)

GSA Capital Partners LLP boosted its stake in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 223.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,022 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,540 shares during the quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP’s holdings in Lancaster Colony were worth $1,416,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Consolidated Planning Corp grew its stake in shares of Lancaster Colony by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. Consolidated Planning Corp now owns 1,232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $233,000 after buying an additional 53 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Lancaster Colony by 2.3% in the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 2,506 shares of the company’s stock valued at $442,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the period. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its stake in Lancaster Colony by 1.8% in the third quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 3,805 shares of the company’s stock valued at $672,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. AlphaMark Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 5.2% during the third quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC now owns 1,686 shares of the company’s stock valued at $298,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its position in shares of Lancaster Colony by 0.6% during the second 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 during the period. 66.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Lancaster Colony

In related news, Director Elliot K. Fullen purchased 3,000 shares of Lancaster Colony stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was bought at an average price of $169.00 per share, for a total transaction of $507,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,298 shares in the company, valued at $895,362. This represents a 100.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 29.50% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LANC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Loop Capital decreased 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 note on Friday, November 1st. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a report on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com downgraded Lancaster Colony from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Stephens dropped their target price on Lancaster Colony from $200.00 to $196.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $193.50.

Lancaster Colony Price Performance

LANC opened at $187.88 on Thursday. Lancaster Colony Co. has a fifty-two week low of $161.54 and a fifty-two week high of $215.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.51 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s 50-day moving average is $180.77 and its 200 day moving average is $185.06.

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

Lancaster Colony Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. This is a positive change from Lancaster Colony’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.02%. Lancaster Colony’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.28%.

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.