Becker Capital Management Inc. Has $7.64 Million Stock Holdings in Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW)

Becker Capital Management Inc. lowered its position in shares of Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW - Free Report) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 114,275 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 6,074 shares during the quarter. Becker Capital Management Inc. owned 0.08% of Lamb Weston worth $7,637,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. West Oak Capital LLC grew its position in Lamb Weston by 155.7% in the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 450 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Lamb Weston in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Lamb Weston during the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. Finally, Advantage Trust Co acquired a new position in Lamb Weston during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $53,000. 89.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Lamb Weston Stock Performance

LW stock traded down $0.61 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $51.50. 1,444,425 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,648,562. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $53.05 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.54. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $47.90 and a 12 month high of $89.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.48.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 3rd. The specialty retailer reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.23. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 5.80% and a return on equity of 27.82%. The firm had revenue of $1.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.20 EPS. The business's revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.87%. Lamb Weston's payout ratio is 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.