Brokerages Set Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) Price Target at $87.70

Shares of Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $87.70.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Lamb Weston from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $105.00 to $61.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Barclays decreased their target price on Lamb Weston from $96.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Consumer Edge cut Lamb Weston from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $106.00 to $104.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $98.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 26th.

Lamb Weston Trading Down 0.3 %

NYSE:LW opened at $60.93 on Friday. Lamb Weston has a 1 year low of $52.99 and a 1 year high of $111.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.29. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $73.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $86.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.13, a PEG ratio of 5.65 and a beta of 0.74.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The specialty retailer reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24 by ($0.46). Lamb Weston had a net margin of 11.22% and a return on equity of 44.06%. The company had revenue of $1.61 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.71 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lamb Weston will post 4.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 2nd. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.36%. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.23%.

Insider Activity at Lamb Weston

In other news, Director William G. Jurgensen bought 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $55.43 per share, with a total value of $554,300.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 173,377 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,610,287.11. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 1.66% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lamb Weston

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. TPG GP A LLC increased its position 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 purchasing an additional 1,247,206 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Lamb Weston in the 4th quarter worth $93,553,000. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in Lamb Weston by 78.5% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,888,556 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $158,790,000 after acquiring an additional 830,511 shares during the last quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP grew its position in Lamb Weston by 117.2% during the first quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 1,230,538 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $131,035,000 after acquiring an additional 663,985 shares during the period. Finally, APG Asset Management US Inc. acquired a new stake in Lamb Weston during the fourth quarter worth about $56,699,000. 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.