Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) Lowered to Neutral Rating by Citigroup

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Citigroup from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report released on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $68.00 price target on the specialty retailer’s stock, down from their prior price target of $90.00. Citigroup’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 9.52% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $85.00 price target for the company. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Lamb Weston from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Lamb Weston from $68.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. TD Cowen raised their price target on Lamb Weston from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $81.42.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

LW opened at $62.09 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $76.76 and a 200 day moving average of $72.48. The stock has a market cap of $8.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.58, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.70. 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 52-week low of $52.99 and a 52-week high of $111.88.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last issued its earnings results 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 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.45 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lamb Weston will post 4.26 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lamb Weston

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 9.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,221,665 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $402,791,000 after purchasing an additional 549,812 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in 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 valued at $218,598,000 after buying an additional 24,097 shares during the last quarter. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Lamb Weston by 108.7% in the third quarter. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,107,929 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $201,207,000 after acquiring an additional 1,618,570 shares in the last quarter. TPG GP A LLC grew its stake in shares of 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 last quarter. Finally, Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 5.9% during the second quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 2,045,582 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $171,993,000 after acquiring an additional 114,049 shares in the last quarter. 89.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.