Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) Price Target Raised to $80.00

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) had its target price boosted by Bank of America from $68.00 to $80.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $68.00 price objective (up from $63.00) on shares of Lamb Weston in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Barclays lifted their target price on Lamb Weston from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Lamb Weston from $70.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Consumer Edge lowered Lamb Weston from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $80.56.

Lamb Weston Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of LW stock opened at $77.38 on Monday. 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 has a fifty-two week low of $52.99 and a fifty-two week high of $111.88. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $66.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $74.59. The stock has a market cap of $11.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.75.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The specialty retailer reported $0.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.01. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 34.33%. The firm had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.55 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.63 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Lamb Weston will post 4.26 EPS for the current year.

Lamb Weston Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 1st. Lamb Weston’s payout ratio is currently 19.23%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lamb Weston

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. TPG GP A LLC raised its stake in Lamb Weston by 74.4% during the second quarter. TPG GP A LLC now owns 2,924,230 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $245,869,000 after acquiring an additional 1,247,206 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 78.5% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,888,556 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $158,790,000 after purchasing an additional 830,511 shares during the period. Artemis Investment Management LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 117.2% in the 1st quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 1,230,538 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $131,035,000 after purchasing an additional 663,985 shares during the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd acquired a new position in Lamb Weston during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $42,518,000. Finally, Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. grew its stake in Lamb Weston by 2,989.7% during the 2nd quarter. Deprince Race & Zollo Inc. now owns 373,390 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $31,395,000 after buying an additional 361,305 shares during the last quarter. 89.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.