Xponance Inc. Reduces Holdings in Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW)

Xponance Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) by 15.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 31,985 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 5,631 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Lamb Weston were worth $3,457,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LW. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 12,884 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,393,000 after buying an additional 743 shares during the period. Guidance Capital Inc. raised its stake in Lamb Weston by 25.6% during the 4th quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. now owns 4,186 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $446,000 after acquiring an additional 854 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its holdings in Lamb Weston by 56.5% during the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 39,933 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $4,316,000 after purchasing an additional 14,417 shares in the last quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 537.1% in the fourth quarter. Desjardins Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,134 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $123,000 after purchasing an additional 956 shares during the period. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 12,837 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,388,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares in the last quarter. 89.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on LW shares. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a research note on Monday, March 11th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $128.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Lamb Weston from $138.00 to $113.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Barclays cut their target price on Lamb Weston from $125.00 to $105.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Lamb Weston from $130.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $132.00 to $106.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lamb Weston currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $117.40.

Lamb Weston Stock Performance

NYSE:LW opened at $81.00 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The company has a market cap of $11.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.81, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.72. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $77.41 and a 1 year high of $117.38. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $97.40 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $98.84.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 4th. The specialty retailer reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.40 by ($0.20). Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 50.74% and a net margin of 16.71%. The business had revenue of $1.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.65 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.43 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 5.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 2nd. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.78%. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.23%.

Lamb Weston Company Profile

Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc produces, distributes, and markets frozen potato products worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Global, Foodservice, Retail, and Other. It offers frozen potatoes, commercial ingredients, and appetizers under the Lamb Weston brand, as well as under various customer labels.