Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) Director Jana Partners Management, Lp Purchases 136,000 Shares

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) Director Jana Partners Management, Lp bought 136,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $40.89 per share, for a total transaction of $5,561,040.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 5,148,980 shares in the company, valued at $210,541,792.20. This represents a 2.71% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Jana Partners Management, Lp also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, April 8th, Jana Partners Management, Lp bought 100,000 shares of Lamb Weston stock. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $41.41 per share, with a total value of $4,141,000.00.

Lamb Weston Trading Up 0.1%

LW stock traded up $0.02 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $41.61. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,133,729 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,249,375. Lamb Weston has a 12 month low of $37.62 and a 12 month high of $67.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $44.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.41. The company has a market cap of $5.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.68 and a beta of 0.49.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 1st. The specialty retailer reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.49 billion. Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 23.77% and a net margin of 4.61%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.10 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Lamb Weston will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 5th. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio is currently 71.03%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $54.00 to $46.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Zacks Research raised Lamb Weston from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their price target on Lamb Weston from $48.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Lamb Weston from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Lamb Weston in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lamb Weston currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $48.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lamb Weston

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bank of Nova Scotia grew its position in Lamb Weston by 2.0% during the third quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 9,685 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $563,000 after buying an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 44.2% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 649 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. Banque de Luxembourg S.A. boosted its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 13.6% during the 3rd quarter. Banque de Luxembourg S.A. now owns 1,772 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $103,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 6.5% during the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,718 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $216,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 8.0% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 3,101 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $130,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.56% of the company’s stock.

About Lamb Weston

Lamb Weston, traded on the NYSE under the symbol LW, is a leading global processor and supplier of frozen potato products. The company’s portfolio includes a variety of potato-based items such as French fries, potato wedges, hash browns and specialty cuts tailored to the foodservice and retail grocery channels. Lamb Weston serves quick-service restaurants, full-service operators, grocery chains and food distributors, offering customized product formats, packaging solutions and seasoning options to meet evolving customer demands.

Founded in 1950 and headquartered in Eagle, Idaho, Lamb Weston has grown from a regional processor into one of the world’s largest producers of frozen potato products.