Xponance Inc. Raises Stake in Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW)

Xponance Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 24,268 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 579 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Lamb Weston were worth $1,622,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 9.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,221,665 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $402,791,000 after buying an additional 549,812 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners boosted its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 26.8% in the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,477,165 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $232,330,000 after acquiring an additional 735,901 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 0.7% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,388,056 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $218,598,000 after acquiring an additional 24,097 shares during the last quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston in the third quarter worth approximately $129,480,000. Finally, Champlain Investment Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 31.6% in the third quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,951,025 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $126,309,000 after acquiring an additional 468,190 shares during the last quarter. 89.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lamb Weston Trading Up 0.8 %

LW opened at $53.16 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.76. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $56.34 and its 200-day moving average is $66.17. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $47.90 and a 52-week high of $107.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26.

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

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd will be paid a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.78%. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Charles A. Blixt purchased 1,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was acquired 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 owns 22,982 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,453,611.50. This represents a 5.51 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Robert A. Niblock purchased 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 13th. The stock was bought at an average price of $60.94 per share, with a total value of $182,820.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 26,406 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,609,181.64. The trade was a 12.82 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $87.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $80.00 to $68.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Citigroup cut shares of Lamb Weston from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $90.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $85.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $76.73.

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.