Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) Position Increased by Leeward Investments LLC MA

Leeward Investments LLC MA increased its stake in Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) by 41.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 156,473 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 45,904 shares during the period. Leeward Investments LLC MA owned 0.11% of Lamb Weston worth $10,457,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LW. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Lamb Weston by 117.9% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 950 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 514 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates increased its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 45.1% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 269,059 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $17,419,000 after purchasing an additional 83,615 shares during the period. Greenleaf Trust increased its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 11.4% during the 3rd quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 3,470 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $225,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co increased its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 22.5% during the 3rd quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 16,084 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $1,041,000 after purchasing an additional 2,952 shares during the period. Finally, IFM Investors Pty Ltd increased its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 35,050 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $2,269,000 after purchasing an additional 672 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Lamb Weston

In related news, Director Robert A. Niblock purchased 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $60.94 per share, with a total value of $182,820.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 26,406 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,609,181.64. This trade represents a 12.82 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Charles A. Blixt purchased 1,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $63.25 per share, with a total value of $75,900.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 22,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,453,611.50. This represents a 5.51 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LW opened at $55.76 on Friday. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $52.99 and a 1-year high of $107.50. The firm has a market cap of $7.95 billion, a PE ratio of 22.04, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $62.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $67.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The specialty retailer reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.01 by ($0.35). Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 27.82% and a net margin of 5.80%. The business had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.45 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.65%. This is a positive change from Lamb Weston’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 58.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on LW. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Lamb Weston from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Lamb Weston in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $85.00 target price on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Lamb Weston in a report on Thursday, December 12th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $81.00 target price on the stock. Barclays decreased their target price on Lamb Weston from $87.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Lamb Weston from $68.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $81.00.

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.