Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $87.70.

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Lamb Weston from $98.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 26th. TD Cowen cut Lamb Weston from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $105.00 to $61.00 in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Lamb Weston from $106.00 to $104.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Consumer Edge lowered Lamb Weston from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Lamb Weston from $108.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 25th.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director William G. Jurgensen purchased 10,000 shares of Lamb Weston stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $55.43 per share, for a total transaction of $554,300.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 173,377 shares in the company, valued at $9,610,287.11. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.66% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lamb Weston

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. TPG GP A LLC lifted its holdings in Lamb Weston by 74.4% in the 2nd quarter. TPG GP A LLC now owns 2,924,230 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $245,869,000 after buying an additional 1,247,206 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Lamb Weston in the 4th quarter worth approximately $93,553,000. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its holdings in Lamb Weston by 78.5% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,888,556 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $158,790,000 after buying an additional 830,511 shares during the period. Artemis Investment Management LLP lifted its holdings in Lamb Weston by 117.2% in the 1st quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 1,230,538 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $131,035,000 after buying an additional 663,985 shares during the period. Finally, APG Asset Management US Inc. purchased a new stake in Lamb Weston in the 4th quarter worth approximately $56,699,000. 89.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lamb Weston Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE LW opened at $61.68 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $67.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $82.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.91 billion, a PE ratio of 8.23, a P/E/G ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 0.59. Lamb Weston has a one year low of $52.99 and a one year high of $111.88.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The specialty retailer reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by ($0.46). The company had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.71 billion. Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 44.06% and a net margin of 11.22%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Lamb Weston will post 4.54 EPS for the current year.

Lamb Weston Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd were given a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.33%. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.23%.

About Lamb Weston

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.