Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) Shares Sold by abrdn plc

abrdn plc cut its holdings in Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) by 8.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 42,610 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 4,049 shares during the period. abrdn plc’s holdings in Lamb Weston were worth $2,829,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 9.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,221,665 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $402,791,000 after buying an additional 549,812 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Lamb Weston by 0.7% in the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 108.7% during the third quarter. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,107,929 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $201,207,000 after buying an additional 1,618,570 shares in the last quarter. Southpoint Capital Advisors LP acquired a new position in Lamb Weston in the third quarter valued at $129,480,000. Finally, Champlain Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 31.6% during the 3rd quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 1,951,025 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $126,309,000 after buying an additional 468,190 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.56% of the company’s stock.

Lamb Weston Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:LW opened at $58.86 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $66.17 and a 200 day simple moving average of $67.52. The firm has a market cap of $8.40 billion, a PE ratio of 23.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.72. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $52.99 and a 12-month high of $107.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last released its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The specialty retailer reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.01 by ($0.35). The business had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.67 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 27.82%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.45 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 3.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This is a positive change from Lamb Weston’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. Lamb Weston’s payout ratio is 58.50%.

Insider Activity at Lamb Weston

In related news, Director Charles A. Blixt purchased 1,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $63.25 per share, for a total transaction of $75,900.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 22,982 shares in the company, valued at $1,453,611.50. This trade represents a 5.51 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert A. Niblock acquired 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $60.94 per share, with a total value of $182,820.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 26,406 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,609,181.64. This represents a 12.82 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LW has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $87.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Lamb Weston in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $85.00 price target for the company. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Lamb Weston from $80.00 to $68.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, December 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Lamb Weston from $68.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Citigroup lowered Lamb Weston from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $90.00 to $68.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lamb Weston currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $81.00.

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.