JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Positive Forecast for Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) Stock Price

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) had its target price lifted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $68.00 to $78.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a neutral rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $76.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Lamb Weston from $65.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Lamb Weston from $68.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. TD Cowen boosted their price objective 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 raised their target price on Lamb Weston from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $83.27.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

LW opened at $82.23 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $11.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.30, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 1.19. Lamb Weston has a fifty-two week low of $52.99 and a fifty-two week high of $111.88. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $76.48 and a 200 day moving average of $72.85.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The specialty retailer reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.01. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 34.33%. The company had revenue of $1.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.63 EPS. Lamb Weston’s quarterly revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Lamb Weston will post 4.26 EPS for the current year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a dividend of $0.36 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.75%. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.80%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lamb Weston

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of LW. City State Bank raised its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 56.2% during the third quarter. City State Bank now owns 417 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Lamb Weston by 357.5% during the 2nd quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 261 shares during the period. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in Lamb Weston during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in Lamb Weston in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. 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.