Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Stephens Analyst Says

Key Points

• Stephens raised Lamb Weston’s price target to $55 from $50 while maintaining an “equal weight” rating, implying 14.55% potential upside from the prior close.
• Lamb Weston reported quarterly EPS of $0.75, exceeding the $0.59 consensus estimate, while revenue reached $1.67 billion versus expectations of $1.65 billion.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with a consensus “Hold” rating and average price target of $53.64; institutional investors own approximately 89.56% of the stock.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) had its target price lifted by analysts at Stephens from $50.00 to $55.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "equal weight" rating on the specialty retailer's stock. Stephens' target price indicates a potential upside of 14.55% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on LW. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Lamb Weston from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Lamb Weston from $40.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Lamb Weston from $57.00 to $54.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a "hold" rating and set a $53.00 price objective on shares of Lamb Weston in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Lamb Weston from $45.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $53.64.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LW opened at $48.02 on Thursday. The company's 50-day moving average is $49.88 and its 200 day moving average is $46.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.45. The company has a market capitalization of $6.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.49. Lamb Weston has a fifty-two week low of $37.62 and a fifty-two week high of $67.07.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 6th. The specialty retailer reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $1.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.65 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 3.85% and a return on equity of 23.27%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.74 earnings per share. Lamb Weston has set its FY 2027 guidance at 3.050-3.350 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Lamb Weston will post 3.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Lamb Weston

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LW. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 26.4% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,933 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 404 shares during the period. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in Lamb Weston by 8.9% in the 2nd quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 6,158 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Lamb Weston by 22.8% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,777 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $120,000 after purchasing an additional 516 shares in the last quarter. VELA Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Lamb Weston by 0.7% during the second quarter. VELA Investment Management LLC now owns 78,694 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $3,398,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Lamb Weston by 6.4% in the first quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 9,465 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $400,000 after purchasing an additional 568 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 NYSE: LW is a global producer and marketer of frozen potato products. The company supplies French fries, potato wedges, hash browns, potato rounds, mashed potatoes and other specialty potato products to restaurants, foodservice distributors, retailers and food manufacturers.

Its product portfolio includes conventional and specialty frozen potato offerings, as well as sweet potato products and appetizer items. Lamb Weston sells products under its Lamb Weston and Grown in Idaho brands, while also providing private-label products for retail and foodservice customers.

The company's history dates to the 1950s, when it began producing frozen potato products in the Pacific Northwest.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.