Lamb Weston $LW Shares Sold by JANA Partners Management LP

Key Points

• Hedge fund JANA Partners cut its Lamb Weston stake by 30.7%, selling 2,223,584 shares to hold 5,008,635 shares (≈3.59% of the company) worth about $290.9M, with LW representing 14.1% of JANA’s portfolio and its 2nd-largest holding.
• Other institutions added or increased positions—Norges Bank opened a ~$119.4M stake, Ion Asset added ~$84.4M, and Capital Research boosted its holding by 46.3% to 2.15M shares—leaving institutional ownership at about 89.56%.
• Lamb Weston slightly beat the quarter’s estimates (EPS $0.69 vs. $0.68; revenue $1.62B vs. $1.59B), raised its quarterly dividend to $0.38 (annualized $1.52, ~3.8% yield), and carries a consensus analyst rating of Hold with a $53 price target.

JANA Partners Management LP lessened its position in Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Free Report) by 30.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,008,635 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after selling 2,223,584 shares during the quarter. Lamb Weston makes up 14.1% of JANA Partners Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. JANA Partners Management LP owned approximately 3.59% of Lamb Weston worth $290,902,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Lamb Weston in the 2nd quarter valued at about $119,413,000. Ion Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston during the second quarter worth about $84,379,000. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of Lamb Weston by 46.3% in the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,150,000 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $124,872,000 after purchasing an additional 680,000 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 989.7% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 704,239 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $36,515,000 after purchasing an additional 639,615 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of Lamb Weston by 129.2% in the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,089,110 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $63,256,000 after purchasing an additional 613,829 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.56% of the company's stock.

Lamb Weston Price Performance

Lamb Weston stock opened at $40.49 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.08. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $53.40. The stock has a market cap of $5.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.05 and a beta of 0.43. Lamb Weston has a 12-month low of $39.79 and a 12-month high of $67.07.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, December 19th. The specialty retailer reported $0.69 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 27.71% and a net margin of 6.06%.Lamb Weston's revenue for the quarter was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.66 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Lamb Weston will post 3.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lamb Weston Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th were given a dividend of $0.38 per share. This is a boost from Lamb Weston's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $1.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. Lamb Weston's dividend payout ratio is 54.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lamb Weston

In other Lamb Weston news, insider Jan Eli B. Craps bought 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $48.65 per share, for a total transaction of $2,432,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider directly owned 300,000 shares in the company, valued at $14,595,000. This trade represents a 20.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $46.00 target price on shares of Lamb Weston in a report on Monday, December 29th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Lamb Weston from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Lamb Weston from $66.00 to $53.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Barclays lowered their target price on Lamb Weston from $68.00 to $55.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Lamb Weston from $62.00 to $50.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $53.00.

About Lamb Weston

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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