Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) Director Robert A. Niblock Acquires 3,000 Shares

Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) Director Robert A. Niblock purchased 3,000 shares of Lamb Weston stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $60.94 per share, with a total value of $182,820.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 26,406 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,609,181.64. The trade was a 12.82 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

NYSE:LW opened at $59.74 on Wednesday. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $52.99 and a 52 week high of $110.61. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $72.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $69.81. The company has a market capitalization of $8.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The specialty retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.01 by ($0.35). The company had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 34.33%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.45 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 4.26 EPS for the current year.

Lamb Weston Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be issued a $0.37 dividend. This is a positive change from Lamb Weston’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.48%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LW has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays reduced their target price on Lamb Weston from $87.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Lamb Weston from $70.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $81.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Citigroup cut shares of Lamb Weston from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $90.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $81.00.

Institutional Trading of Lamb Weston

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. City State Bank lifted its stake in Lamb Weston by 56.2% during the third quarter. City State Bank now owns 417 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Lamb Weston during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. West Oak Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Lamb Weston by 155.7% during the 4th quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 450 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares during the period. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in Lamb Weston in the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC increased its stake in Lamb Weston by 143.8% during the third quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.56% of the company’s stock.

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.