Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) Short Interest Down 8.5% in December

Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 410,800 shares, a decline of 8.5% from the December 15th total of 448,800 shares. Approximately 2.1% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 135,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.0 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lancaster Colony

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its stake in Lancaster Colony by 336.2% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 23,393 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,050,000 after acquiring an additional 18,030 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lancaster Colony by 22.6% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 6,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,087,000 after purchasing an additional 1,157 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lancaster Colony during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. First Hawaiian Bank lifted its holdings in Lancaster Colony by 15.4% in the fourth quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 3,337 shares of the company’s stock worth $578,000 after purchasing an additional 445 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Lancaster Colony by 56.4% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 280 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. 66.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Lancaster Colony Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LANC opened at $171.10 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.72 billion, a PE ratio of 29.60 and a beta of 0.36. Lancaster Colony has a 1-year low of $163.20 and a 1-year high of $215.31. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $180.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $182.14.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $466.56 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $468.36 million. Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.01% and a net margin of 8.49%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.70 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Lancaster Colony will post 6.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lancaster Colony Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were issued a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 5th. This is a boost from Lancaster Colony’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.90. Lancaster Colony’s payout ratio is 65.74%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LANC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. 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 research report on Friday, November 1st. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $196.00 target price on shares of Lancaster Colony in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th.

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.