Retirement Systems of Alabama Trims Position in Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW)

Retirement Systems of Alabama cut its position in Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) by 0.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 30,653 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 223 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Lamb Weston were worth $1,634,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Lamb Weston by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 166,384 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $11,119,000 after acquiring an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its stake in Lamb Weston by 30.7% during the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 14,559 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $897,000 after acquiring an additional 3,417 shares in the last quarter. Advisor OS LLC purchased a new position in Lamb Weston during the fourth quarter valued at $556,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its stake in Lamb Weston by 28.7% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 33,263 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,223,000 after acquiring an additional 7,415 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Lamb Weston during the fourth quarter valued at $1,932,000. 89.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Lamb Weston from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $60.00 to $56.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $69.00 to $61.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $72.00 to $66.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $56.00 price objective on shares of Lamb Weston and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lamb Weston presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $67.73.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

Lamb Weston stock opened at $53.21 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $53.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $56.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.51 billion, a PE ratio of 20.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25. Lamb Weston has a 12-month low of $47.90 and a 12-month high of $84.45.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 3rd. The specialty retailer reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $1.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 5.74% and a return on equity of 27.25%. The business’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.20 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Lamb Weston will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

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.