Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) Shares Gap Up – Here’s What Happened

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW)’s stock price gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $55.67, but opened at $59.41. Lamb Weston shares last traded at $60.48, with a volume of 947,787 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on LW shares. Barclays boosted their price objective on Lamb Weston from $61.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Lamb Weston from $60.00 to $56.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $57.00 target price for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $65.33.

Lamb Weston Trading Up 4.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The business’s 50-day moving average is $55.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.00. The firm has a market cap of $8.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.49.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The specialty retailer reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.23. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 5.54% and a return on equity of 27.99%. The business had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.59 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.78 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. Lamb Weston has set its FY 2026 guidance at EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Lamb Weston will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 28th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 31st. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.96%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lamb Weston

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LW. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in shares of Lamb Weston during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,453,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Lamb Weston by 25.9% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,172 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $680,000 after purchasing an additional 2,090 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Lamb Weston by 3,503.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 66,518 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $3,545,000 after purchasing an additional 64,672 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in Lamb Weston by 8.7% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 311,456 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $16,601,000 after purchasing an additional 24,909 shares during the period. Finally, Czech National Bank boosted its position in Lamb Weston by 6.0% during the first quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 32,762 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,746,000 after purchasing an additional 1,843 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.56% of the company’s stock.

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.