Metis Global Partners LLC Acquires 276 Shares of Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW)

Metis Global Partners LLC raised its holdings in Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) by 6.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,819 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 276 shares during the quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Lamb Weston were worth $322,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Alberta Investment Management Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston during the fourth quarter worth $2,641,000. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lamb Weston during the 4th quarter worth about $2,850,000. Leeward Investments LLC MA increased its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 41.5% in the 4th quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA now owns 156,473 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $10,457,000 after acquiring an additional 45,904 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,343 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $892,000 after acquiring an additional 817 shares during the period. Finally, Nicola Wealth Management LTD. bought a new position in Lamb Weston during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $6,474,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.56% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Lamb Weston

In other news, Director Charles A. Blixt purchased 1,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $63.25 per share, for a total transaction of $75,900.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 22,982 shares in the company, valued at $1,453,611.50. The trade was a 5.51 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert A. Niblock acquired 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LW has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Lamb Weston to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $85.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Lamb Weston from $80.00 to $68.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Lamb Weston from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Lamb Weston from $68.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, December 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $81.00.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

Shares of LW opened at $51.53 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $59.50 and a 200-day moving average of $67.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.76. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $49.28 and a twelve month high of $107.50.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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). Lamb Weston had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 27.82%. The business had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.67 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.45 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 3.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This is a positive change from Lamb Weston’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.50%.

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.