Barclays Has Lowered Expectations for Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) Stock Price

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) had its price target decreased by Barclays from $87.00 to $69.00 in a report released on Monday,Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on LW. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Lamb Weston from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Lamb Weston from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $85.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup cut shares of Lamb Weston from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $90.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lamb Weston has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $81.00.

Lamb Weston Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:LW opened at $63.69 on Monday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $76.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $72.08. Lamb Weston has a 1 year low of $52.99 and a 1 year high of $111.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.01 by ($0.35). The company had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.67 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 34.33%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.45 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Lamb Weston will post 4.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. This is an increase from Lamb Weston’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.32%. Lamb Weston’s payout ratio is 58.50%.

Insider Activity

In other Lamb Weston news, Director Charles A. Blixt bought 1,200 shares of Lamb Weston stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $63.25 per share, for a total transaction of $75,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 22,982 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,453,611.50. This trade represents a 5.51 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lamb Weston

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. City State Bank boosted its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 56.2% during the 3rd quarter. City State Bank now owns 417 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Lamb Weston by 357.5% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 261 shares in the last quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lamb Weston during the third quarter worth $29,000. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston in the third quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 143.8% in the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 573 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 338 shares during the period. 89.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.