Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Takes Position in The Marzetti Company $MZTI

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new position in The Marzetti Company (NASDAQ:MZTI) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 5,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $816,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC acquired a new position in Marzetti during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Marzetti during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Marzetti in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Marzetti in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Marzetti in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 66.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on MZTI. Weiss Ratings cut Marzetti from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. DA Davidson decreased their price target on Marzetti from $184.00 to $168.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Stephens lowered their price target on Marzetti from $160.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $169.33.

Marzetti Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MZTI opened at $115.79 on Monday. The Marzetti Company has a twelve month low of $104.28 and a twelve month high of $190.96. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $113.96 and a two-hundred day moving average of $141.79. The company has a market capitalization of $3.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.12 and a beta of 0.32.

Marzetti Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.5%. Marzetti’s dividend payout ratio is currently 62.60%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Luis Viso sold 1,221 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.31, for a total transaction of $133,467.51. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 1,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $210,312.44. This trade represents a 38.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 29.10% of the company’s stock.

Marzetti 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.