BlackRock Inc. Takes Position in Lamb Weston $LW

BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 16,912,375 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $730,276,000. BlackRock Inc. owned approximately 12.30% of Lamb Weston at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Arnhold LLC grew its stake in Lamb Weston by 710.2% during the fourth quarter. Arnhold LLC now owns 38,217 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $1,601,000 after purchasing an additional 33,500 shares during the period. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Lamb Weston by 44.8% during the 4th quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 89,991 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $3,770,000 after purchasing an additional 27,835 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 349.1% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 690,493 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $29,180,000 after acquiring an additional 536,745 shares during the last quarter. Texas Yale Capital Corp. purchased a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,264,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its stake in Lamb Weston by 11.4% during the 1st quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 525,541 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $21,762,000 after acquiring an additional 53,655 shares in the last quarter. 89.56% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lamb Weston Stock Up 0.2%

LW stock opened at $53.58 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $48.75 and a 200 day moving average of $45.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97. The firm has a market cap of $7.37 billion, a PE ratio of 25.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.46. Lamb Weston has a twelve month low of $37.62 and a twelve month high of $67.07.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 24th. The specialty retailer reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.24. Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 23.33% and a net margin of 4.39%.The company had revenue of $1.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.70 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.87 earnings per share. Lamb Weston's revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Lamb Weston has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.950-3.250 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Lamb Weston will post 3.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th. Lamb Weston's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 73.08%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on LW. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $43.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Stephens lifted their price target on Lamb Weston from $46.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $54.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 27th. Wall Street Zen raised Lamb Weston from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $52.00 target price on shares of Lamb Weston in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $53.36.

Lamb Weston Company Profile

Lamb Weston, traded on the NYSE under the symbol LW, is a leading global processor and supplier of frozen potato products. The company's portfolio includes a variety of potato-based items such as French fries, potato wedges, hash browns and specialty cuts tailored to the foodservice and retail grocery channels. Lamb Weston serves quick-service restaurants, full-service operators, grocery chains and food distributors, offering customized product formats, packaging solutions and seasoning options to meet evolving customer demands.

Founded in 1950 and headquartered in Eagle, Idaho, Lamb Weston has grown from a regional processor into one of the world's largest producers of frozen potato products.

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