Lancaster Colony Co. (LANC) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.95 on June 30th

Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, May 14th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a dividend of 0.95 per share on Monday, June 30th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.28%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th.

Lancaster Colony has raised its dividend payment by an average of 6.2% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 62 years. Lancaster Colony has a payout ratio of 53.7% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Lancaster Colony to earn $7.31 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.80 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 52.0%.

Lancaster Colony Stock Up 0.9%

LANC stock opened at $166.93 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $177.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $180.94. The company has a market capitalization of $4.60 billion, a PE ratio of 29.34 and a beta of 0.50. Lancaster Colony has a 52-week low of $156.14 and a 52-week high of $202.63.

Lancaster Colony (NASDAQ:LANC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.61 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $457.84 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $483.47 million. Lancaster Colony had a return on equity of 19.51% and a net margin of 8.26%. Lancaster Colony’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.44 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lancaster Colony will post 6.8 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on LANC shares. Stephens lowered their target price on shares of Lancaster Colony from $200.00 to $195.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Benchmark upgraded Lancaster Colony from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $185.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Lancaster Colony from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Lancaster Colony from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $203.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

An institutional investor recently raised its position in Lancaster Colony stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in Lancaster Colony Co. (NASDAQ:LANC) by 3.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 32,626 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,186 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada owned 0.12% of Lancaster Colony worth $5,710,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. 66.44% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.