Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) Shares Acquired by Ensign Peak Advisors Inc

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc boosted its holdings in Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) by 36.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 475,694 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 127,281 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc owned 0.33% of Lamb Weston worth $39,996,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Lamb Weston in the 4th quarter worth approximately $93,553,000. Artemis Investment Management LLP lifted 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 worth $131,035,000 after buying an additional 663,985 shares during the period. APG Asset Management US Inc. acquired a new stake in Lamb Weston in the 4th quarter worth about $56,699,000. Ninety One UK Ltd purchased a new stake in Lamb Weston in the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,518,000. Finally, Ceredex Value Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lamb Weston during the 2nd quarter valued at about $24,165,000. 89.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lamb Weston Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:LW opened at $65.44 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $63.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $79.61. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $52.99 and a 52-week high of $111.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.92. The company has a market capitalization of $9.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.96 and a beta of 0.75.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The specialty retailer reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.24 by ($0.46). Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 44.06% and a net margin of 11.22%. The firm had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.71 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 4.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 30th. Investors of record on Friday, August 2nd were issued a $0.36 dividend. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 2nd. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.23%.

Insider Activity at Lamb Weston

In other Lamb Weston news, Director William G. Jurgensen bought 10,000 shares of Lamb Weston stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $55.43 per share, for a total transaction of $554,300.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 173,377 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,610,287.11. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.66% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on LW. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $132.00 to $78.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Lamb Weston from $96.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 26th. TD Cowen cut Lamb Weston from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $105.00 to $61.00 in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Bank of America upped their price target on Lamb Weston from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Lamb Weston from $106.00 to $104.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $83.20.

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.