Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) Shares Sold by KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS

Key Points

• KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS has significantly reduced its stake in Lamb Weston, selling 75,900 shares to hold 26,200 shares, worth approximately $1.40 million.
• Analysts have varying opinions on Lamb Weston, with price targets ranging from $56.00 to $75.00, and a consensus rating of "Hold" with an average price target of $67.40.
• Lamb Weston recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 2.43%.

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS reduced its stake in shares of Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Free Report) by 74.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,200 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 75,900 shares during the quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS's holdings in Lamb Weston were worth $1,396,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of LW. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston during the first quarter worth $1,436,000. Guidance Capital Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 11.9% during the first quarter. Guidance Capital Inc. now owns 17,086 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $880,000 after purchasing an additional 1,820 shares during the last quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lifted its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 2.0% during the first quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 10,971 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $585,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. South Dakota Investment Council lifted its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 4.8% during the first quarter. South Dakota Investment Council now owns 112,010 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $5,970,000 after purchasing an additional 5,100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston during the first quarter worth $231,000. 89.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LW has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Lamb Weston from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Lamb Weston from $60.00 to $56.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $56.00 price objective on Lamb Weston and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays boosted their price target on Lamb Weston from $61.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Lamb Weston from $65.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $67.40.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

NYSE LW traded down $1.54 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $59.32. The stock had a trading volume of 2,310,674 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,003,989. The firm's 50 day moving average is $53.28 and its 200 day moving average is $54.38. Lamb Weston has a twelve month low of $47.87 and a twelve month high of $83.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.63, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.46.

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 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.23. Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 27.99% and a net margin of 5.54%. The company had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.78 EPS. Lamb Weston's revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Lamb Weston will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be paid a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 1st. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.49%. Lamb Weston's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.