Empowered Funds LLC Purchases 239,579 Shares of Lamb Weston $LW

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC increased its Lamb Weston stake by 585.2% in the first quarter, adding 239,579 shares to hold 280,522 shares valued at approximately $11.9 million. Institutional investors collectively own 89.56% of the company.
• Lamb Weston exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.87 in adjusted EPS versus the $0.63 consensus and revenue of $1.77 billion, up 5.6% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.38 per share, representing a 2.8% annualized yield.
• Analysts maintain a largely cautious outlook, with three Buy ratings and eleven Holds; the consensus rating is Hold with an average price target of $53.36. Shares opened at $53.90, near the consensus target.

Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Free Report) by 585.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 280,522 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 239,579 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC owned 0.20% of Lamb Weston worth $11,855,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MCF Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 44.2% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 649 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Lamb Weston by 380.7% during the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 721 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 571 shares during the last quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Lamb Weston by 121.1% during the fourth quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,130 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 619 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC bought a new position in Lamb Weston in the fourth quarter valued at $48,000. Finally, SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its position in Lamb Weston by 4,512.0% in the first quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 1,153 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,128 shares in the last quarter. 89.56% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Lamb Weston Stock Performance

Shares of LW stock opened at $53.90 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $7.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $45.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.54. Lamb Weston has a one year low of $37.62 and a one year high of $67.07.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 24th. The specialty retailer reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.24. The company had revenue of $1.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.70 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 4.39% and a return on equity of 23.33%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.87 EPS. Lamb Weston has set its FY 2027 guidance at 2.950-3.250 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Lamb Weston will post 3.04 EPS for the current year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on LW. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $43.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on shares of Lamb Weston from $49.00 to $47.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Barclays raised their price objective on Lamb Weston from $50.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Lamb Weston from $42.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Lamb Weston from $45.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Lamb Weston currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price 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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