Atlas FRM LLC Invests $20.38 Million in Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW)

Atlas FRM LLC acquired a new stake in Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 305,000 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $20,383,000. Lamb Weston makes up approximately 1.9% of Atlas FRM LLC's holdings, making the stock its 8th largest position. Atlas FRM LLC owned about 0.21% of Lamb Weston as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston in the third quarter valued at about $63,000. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its stake in Lamb Weston by 52.0% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 35,089 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $2,272,000 after acquiring an additional 12,010 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp boosted its position in Lamb Weston by 22.5% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 4,075 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $264,000 after acquiring an additional 749 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 165,953 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $10,744,000 after acquiring an additional 3,927 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 67.8% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,846 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $123,000 after purchasing an additional 746 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on LW shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $72.00 to $66.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on Lamb Weston from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. StockNews.com downgraded Lamb Weston from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a "hold" rating and issued a $57.00 price target on shares of Lamb Weston in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $56.00 price target on Lamb Weston and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lamb Weston presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $70.64.

Lamb Weston Stock Performance

Shares of LW stock traded down $0.72 during trading on Thursday, reaching $52.09. 1,368,582 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,651,065. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $53.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $63.68. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $47.90 and a twelve month high of $89.51. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.35 billion, a PE ratio of 20.59, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 3rd. The specialty retailer reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.23. The firm had revenue of $1.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.50 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 27.82%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.20 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.84%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 2nd. Lamb Weston's dividend payout ratio is presently 58.04%.

Lamb Weston 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.