Becker Capital Management Inc. Has $4.74 Million Position in Lamb Weston $LW

Becker Capital Management Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) by 11.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 91,375 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 12,351 shares during the quarter. Becker Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.07% of Lamb Weston worth $4,738,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of LW. State Street Corp raised its stake in Lamb Weston by 1.1% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,801,585 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $300,812,000 after buying an additional 63,865 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its stake in Lamb Weston by 10.2% in the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 9,666 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $501,000 after buying an additional 897 shares during the period. CoreFirst Bank & Trust bought a new position in Lamb Weston during the second quarter worth $61,000. Ossiam grew its holdings in Lamb Weston by 56.8% in the second quarter. Ossiam now owns 5,972 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $310,000 after purchasing an additional 2,164 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia bought a new stake in Lamb Weston in the second quarter valued at $492,000. 89.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Lamb Weston Stock Up 1.3%

LW stock opened at $59.00 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.22 billion, a PE ratio of 28.23, a P/E/G ratio of 3.86 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. Lamb Weston has a twelve month low of $47.87 and a twelve month high of $83.98. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $61.37 and its 200-day moving average is $56.99.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 24th. The specialty retailer reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 28.08% and a net margin of 4.56%.The business had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter. Sell-side analysts expect that Lamb Weston will post 3.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 28th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 31st. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Lamb Weston’s payout ratio is 70.81%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on LW. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Lamb Weston in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Lamb Weston from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price objective on Lamb Weston from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 1st. Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of Lamb Weston in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on Lamb Weston from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lamb Weston currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $65.70.

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.