Entropy Technologies LP Acquires New Position in Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW)

Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 6,284 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $335,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of LW. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Lamb Weston during the 4th quarter valued at about $19,802,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 44.9% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 7,222 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $483,000 after buying an additional 2,237 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 13.9% in the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 4,494 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $300,000 after buying an additional 550 shares during the period. Mariner LLC grew its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 23,886 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $1,596,000 after buying an additional 1,365 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan purchased a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $134,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on LW. Stifel Nicolaus set a $56.00 price target on shares of Lamb Weston and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Lamb Weston from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $60.00 to $56.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $61.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $67.40.

Lamb Weston Stock Performance

Shares of LW stock opened at $54.83 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $53.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 1.38. Lamb Weston has a one year low of $47.87 and a one year high of $83.98. The firm has a market cap of $7.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.49.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The specialty retailer reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.64 by $0.23. The company had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. Lamb Weston had a net margin of 5.54% and a return on equity of 27.99%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.78 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Lamb Weston will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 1st. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Lamb Weston's dividend payout ratio is 58.96%.

About Lamb Weston

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.

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