Hsbc Holdings PLC Has $19.92 Million Position in Lamb Weston $LW

Key Points

• HSBC Holdings PLC increased its Lamb Weston stake by 191.5% in Q4, ending with 471,886 shares valued at about $19.9 million.
• Several analysts remain cautious on LW: JPMorgan and BNP Paribas Exane lowered price targets, Weiss Ratings cut the stock to sell, and the consensus rating is currently Hold with an average target price of $47.82.
• Despite mixed sentiment, Lamb Weston reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $0.72 per share on revenue of $1.56 billion, and it recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.38 per share for a 3.3% yield.

Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its position in shares of Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Free Report) by 191.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 471,886 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 309,995 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned approximately 0.34% of Lamb Weston worth $19,922,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of Nova Scotia raised its position in Lamb Weston by 2.0% during the third quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 9,685 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $563,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 44.2% in the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 649 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,718 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $216,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 3,101 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $130,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fiduciary Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 7.5% during the 3rd quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 4,324 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $251,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.56% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on LW. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Lamb Weston from $50.00 to $44.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 24th. Weiss Ratings cut Lamb Weston from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Zacks Research raised Lamb Weston from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Stephens started coverage on shares of Lamb Weston in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $46.00 target price for the company. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $48.00 to $41.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $47.82.

Insider Activity

In other Lamb Weston news, Director Jana Partners Management, Lp acquired 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $43.19 per share, for a total transaction of $2,159,500.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 5,398,980 shares in the company, valued at $233,181,946.20. This represents a 0.93% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Peter J. Bensen bought 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $39.45 per share, for a total transaction of $197,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 17,204 shares in the company, valued at $678,697.80. This trade represents a 40.97% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have bought 391,000 shares of company stock worth $16,270,790. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Lamb Weston Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of LW opened at $45.74 on Thursday. Lamb Weston has a 52 week low of $37.62 and a 52 week high of $67.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.38, a PEG ratio of 5.98 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 1.46. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $43.45 and a 200-day moving average of $44.86.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 1st. The specialty retailer reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.11. Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 23.77% and a net margin of 4.61%.The business had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.49 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.10 EPS. Lamb Weston's quarterly revenue was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lamb Weston will post 2.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a dividend of $0.38 per share. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. Lamb Weston's payout ratio is 71.03%.

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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